We Are Thieves
by Niephora
Summary: Like his mother, Kat, James Bishop is a natural born thief. He and his crew are some of the best thieves in the world, but on one particular heist they require the help of a regular teenage girl. Follow James and his crew on their heist as they compete against another crew to steal a priceless artifact and restore honour to the world of thieves. Reoccurences of originl characters.
1. The Ballerina Queen

_**Well, hello over there. This is my first story and I'm fairly new to writing, so you'll have to bear with me for a bit before I get the hang of this fan fiction thing. I would be forever grateful to you if you could leave a review. Please don't hesitate to give me constructive criticism. Any and all opinions are welcome. And with out further delay, here we go:**_

A shadow sprang across the courtyard of the Louvre. Hidden in the darkness of the night, a teenage girl carefully made her way along side the wall on the museum. She stopped when she reached an old drainage tunnel, easily moving aside the broken pole and then replacing it once she was safely inside the tunnel. This drain system hadn't been used for years, but it provided the perfect secret entrance in through the walls of the old building.

Once inside she followed a familiar path she had traveled countless times before, moving through the blind spots of every camera and sensor. It was a dance she had done for years.

Natalie West was not a common teenage girl, for more than one reason. Normal girls don't sneak into the Louvre in the dead of night. Years ago, when she was only a little girl, Natalie's grandfather had shown her this path through the shadows. She didn't know how her grandfather had figured out the complex system, but she was grateful to him. It was their secret.

Grandfather West had loved art. It had been his one true passion in life, which he had passed onto his beloved granddaughter. He believed that viewing a painting was a very personal experience, and not something to be done in hot and sweaty crowds like tourists. No, art was a private thing. Which was why he first broke into the Louvre, so that he could be alone with his true loves.

It had always been their secret. Natalie and her grandfather had snuck in together dozens of times. Always following the same movements through the darkness, like their own personal waltz. But time had played its cruel tricks, and now Natalie was left to dance alone.

She moved through gallery after gallery filled with priceless paintings and sculptures, but only one room could hold her attention. Natalie silently entered her favorite gallery. It never failed to take her breath away. She removed her satchel and placed it by the bench in the center of the room. This was her home, here amongst her favorite paintings.

There, surrounded by the swirls of color, Natalie was at peace. She watched, as the strokes of paint seemed to flow together, and move in a perfectly orchestrated dance across the canvas. Each painting had a different tone, a different song to move to. Some swayed calmly, like they were touched by a gentle breeze. Others pounded at their frames, as if eager to escape their confinement and move into reality. Nothing else seemed to matter when Natalie was there.

Memories of standing in that room with her grandfather hit Natalie like powerful waves, threatening to knock her from her feet and downed her. How many hours had they wondered these halls? They would sit together in the presence of these great works and imagine stories to match the paintings.

In the room to the right hung a ballerina painted by Degas. Natalie vaguely remembered their made up tale of how the dancer was secretly a queen, but ballet was her true passion. She would rule the kingdom by day, and by night she would be queen of the stage.

Natalie stood in front of her favorite Monet, careful not to get too close and set off the sensors. Within the frame, a woman lay in a field with her skirt sprawled out around her as a gentle wind brushed through the tall grass. The woman looked completely at peace and content with the world.

"Impressive." A voice from behind startled Natalie. She whipped around to see a male figure standing in the shadows, watching her.

Her heart rate jumped from zero to sixty in a split second. How long had he been watching her? How had she not seen him?

A wave of confusion crossed over Natalie as she raked over the man in the shadows and found that he wasn't a guard, he wasn't even a man really. In front of her stood a teenage boy with golden hair and icy blue eyes. He leaned against the opposite wall, observing her with a sort of detached curiosity. He looked sixteen, maybe seventeen. He had a tall frame and a runner's physique. The boy was dressed in black from head to toe. If he wasn't a guard who was he and how had he gotten in here?

Had he followed her? Fresh panic slide down Natalie's spine when she thought of the possibility of having carelessly given away from grandfather's secret path.

Who ever this boy was he had caught her where she most definitely should not be. She had to get out of here. Natalie turned to grab her satchel and run but the boy's words stopped her.

"Looking for this?" The golden haired boy smirked at her. In his hand he held Natalie's beloved satchel. Which meant even if she did run, he would know her name from the student ID card in her wallet. How had she been so careless as the leave it on the floor like that? Natalie mentally kicked herself for her own stupidity.

She briefly considered tackling the boy ruby style but decided against it.

There was no way she was getting out of this unscathed, so Natalie took a deep breath and gathered her wits. "Didn't your mother ever tell you not to steal?"

The boy laughed at some private joke. "Quite the opposite actually. Besides I needed to make sure you had some incentive to stay rather than just running off." His accent was indistinguishable. He could have been British, American or even German.

"Who are you?" He inquired. Natalie didn't answer she only looked down at her watch. 1:36. There was only 3 minutes until the guards come around on their hourly patrol and this boy was standing in-between Natalie and her balcony hiding place.

"Running late for something?" He raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?" He repeated.

His insistence became suddenly annoying to Natalie. "It doesn't matter who I am. What you really want to know is how I got here."

"No, I think I'm really more interested in who you are." He surveyed her once again. "What crew are you from?"

"Crew?" Natalie didn't understand what he meant.

The boy's brow furrowed. "Yes, crew. You know, crew, team. What group are you part of? Where is the rest of your crew?" He demanded.

Natalie just shook her head, still confused.

"Are you saying you broke into the Louvre, by yourself?" He seemed utterly perplexed.

But then it was her turn to ask the questions.

"Hold on, why are _you_ here?" She looked beside the boy to see a painting out of its frame, rolled into a case. "You're a thief?" Natalie should have run when she had the chance. She was sure he was about to pull a knife on her.

But instead he only starred back, just as confused as she was. "You're not?"

Just then there was a movement from the room to the left and Natalie realized they weren't alone. Another teenage boys strode into the room, skillfully avoiding the sensors. "Bishop, what's taking so long- Whoa, who's she?" The second boy had a tall-lean frame and bright green eyes that widened at the sight of her.

"Are we stealing people now as well? Because that's where I draw the line." The boy said jokingly.

More voices came from the other room, this time it was feminine. "What's going on in there?" A girl hissed.

Lights flashed down the hallway. "Guards!" The second boy hissed and jumped back into the other room.

Natalie frantically looked for some sort of cover but her only option was the balcony. She grabbed the golden boy's arm and pulled him to the window. If he got caught, he would give her away as well. Natalie pushed it open as fast and silently as she could then climbed through, pulling the boy with her.

They crouched together to the right of the window, waiting for the guards to pass. Flashlights shone in the Monet gallery and the boy moved a finger to his lips for silence. Natalie rolled her eyes at him. As if she was stupid enough to talk in a situation like this.

Natalie could feel the boy's breath stir her hair as they waited together in the shadows. She was trapped in an inconvenient hiding spot, doing something highly illegal, sitting next to an art thief. This was not a good place to be.

But the mysterious boy was grinning was if her was having the time of his life. Natalie couldn't decide if he looked more or less intimidating up close. He really was just a regular looking teenage boy. Sitting so close to him, she got a better look at his icy blue eyes, which were just as unsettling up close. He had pale skin and fair hair to match. Natalie noticed he wore a climbing harness. He must have repelled from the roof somehow. Although she had no idea how he would have gotten on the roof in the first place.

A few moments after the light of the flashlights had disappeared, there was a tap on the glass above their heads and Natalie jumped.

"Coast is clear." The boy with the green eyes whispered through the semi open window. "Let's get to work."

The pair climbed back in through the window. Through the darkness Natalie could see people in the other room, hurry around taking paintings from their frames. There was no way she could stop them without getting her self caught as well. Natalie needed to get out of there. Fast.

Before anyone had the chance to stop her Natalie turned to down the hall, but halted at the sound of the golden-boy's voice. "You never answered by question. Who are you?" Even in the dark Natalie could see the curiosity in his features.

For some strange reason, Natalie felt as though she should help them. She glanced at her watch. "The guards are doing a loop. You have three, maybe four minutes until the patrol comes back."

"Thanks." The second boy nodded towards her before hurry back to help the rest of the crew.

The blond boy didn't move he just stood their watching her intently. Natalie took one last look at the ballerina queen before turning to face him.

"Do me a favor, leave the Degas." Before he had a chance to answer, she pivoted and ran down the hall back to her secret entrance.

As Natalie West escaped out through the courtyard and darted passed the enormous glass triangle, she felt oddly thrilled.

It wasn't likely she would be able to go back to her favorite gallery anytime soon. Once the robbery was discovered the security would be doubled. Besides, if the thieves got their way, most of her paintings would be gone. Still, for some odd reason she found it hard to be angry with the golden haired boy and his crew.

Once safety away in the streets, Natalie looked back over her shoulder at the window of Monet gallery. Maybe it was her imagination, but she could have sworn she saw a figure standing in the window, watching her.

As she made her way back to her Parisian apartment a few blocks away, her breathing began to slow, but she could still feel the rush of adrenaline pumping through her veins. It wasn't until she was home that she realized she had forgotten her satchel in the museum. Natalie had no idea how drastically that one night would change her life forever. Some things we just never see coming.

The next morning Natalie woke, convinced the events of the previous night had all been a crazy dream. She dressed herself like she did every morning in Paris and headed down the street to buy her breakfast in the marketplace.

While waiting in line for her morning coffee, Natalie spotted the news headline on the papers. 'Effraction au musée du Louvre'. Break-in at the Louvre.

Natalie paid for a newspaper and ripped it open to the second page. The article said that two galleries had been emptied out in the dead of night. So far the police had no clues as to who the culprit was or how they got in. She breathed a sigh of relief. The journalist reported that a single painting was left in the Degas gallery, where the thief had left a small card tucked inside the frame.

Bellow the article was a picture of the Ballerina queen painting, and slipped into the frame was a piece of paper with a single word that proved it had been more than just a dream.

"–James"

_**Pretty please with a stolen Degas on top leave me a review. I'll update every (today is an exception) Monday, Wensday and Friday so y'all come back now, ya hear. See you tomorrow. P.S Oh and did I forget to mention... Review!...Please. **_


	2. Brownstone

_**Soooo here is the second chapter. It's mostly just talk so I apologize for the slowness of it. I hope you and enjoy and pleaaase review. Thank you so much to Littlebookdemon and Moogie for reviewing the first chapter, you made my day (more like you made my year). Enjoy :)**_

The wind gust down the Brooklyn Street outside as James Bishop stepped through the front door of the brownstone. He was met by the familiar smell of stew cooking on the stove.

As a thief and a con artist, he had no permanent residence, so the family brownstone was the closest thing to a physical home James had ever known. This was where the family met to plan the next heist. It was the place where he took his first steps and planned his first solo con. When the world seemed too big to handle alone, and the weather outside became too cold to bear, the brownstone was James' shelter.

James Bishop was the son of one of the best thieves in the world, Katarina Bishop. He had been raised by criminals and was in turn a criminal himself. James and Kat came from a long family line of thieves.

On that cold Autum evening James was greeted by the familiar sight of his crew sitting around the table in the kitchen, discussing plans for their next job. The crew was family, and they had all grown up together.

"Hey, J." Dmitri greeted him with a lopsided grin. "How was the detour?" After their Louvre heist two days prior, James had split off from the group to look into the target for their next heist.

"Good. I've found us a mark."

"A big one?" Siena inquired.

Dmitri snorted. "What other kind is there?"

Dmitri and Siena were the Antokov twins, James second cousins. Their mother, Gabrielle, was James' mother's cousin and had been part of her crew since they were teenagers. Aunt Gabrielle had had the twins while working a long con in Turkey. Since their biological father, whom they had never met, was the mark of the con; the twins had pretty much been thieves since before they were even born. And it showed. They were some of the best thieves in the world. Dmitri specialized in explosives and Siena in locks.

Mac Bagshaw sat down beside them with a bowl of hot soup in hand. He nodded towards James in greeting.

Mac was the son of Hamish and Catherine Bagshaw. The Bagshaws weren't technically family, but they had been considered family since generations before James was born. Mac was an only child, but he did have several cousins. Rose, Fred, and Charlie Bagshaw were Uncle Angus' kids. They might have been part of the crew as well, if they weren't all significantly younger than the four teens.

The twins were six months older than James, and they were approaching 16. Mac was the oldest as 17.

They were a small crew, and it left them at a disadvantage, but they worked seamlessly together. Pulling large jobs required a large crew and four people, no matter how skilled they were, just didn't cut it. It was this issue that was on James' mind as he sat down at the table.

The twins had a set of blueprints sprawled out across the table.

"How does it look?" James inquired as he swiped Dmitri's bowl of soup.

"The vault is a no go. It's do-able I mean. But our best bet is to pick up the target during transport."

"You can bet the Aussies will be on this one as well." Mac chipped in.

Dmitri groaned. "Ugh! Can't those guys find their own statues to steal?"

"Maybe a Theseus and the Minotaur would work?" Siena suggested. "We could ask Uncle Hale if he still has those horns from the Singapore job."

"Yeah, but we need a tech guy for that con and in case you've forgotten we're fresh out." James said, growing more and more frustrated by their small numbers.

"We can ask Uncle Simon to help." Siena suggested.

"No go. He's wrapped up in work for the next big heist Aunt Kat is planning." Dmitri said. "Uncle Hale said it's going to be big. Not sure what the target is yet but it sounds like it might be a diamond heist."

"Let's focus on our own job right now." James tried to bring the focus back to the blueprints. His parents had their heist to do and he had his.

Just as the crew was about to dive back into planning, they were interrupted by the front door swinging open. Aunt Gabrielle swept gracefully into the brownstone, followed by Uncle Simon carrying a large box of wires.

"Simon, look who's here, its Kitten and his little crew." Aunt Gabrielle entered the kitchen with her usual flamboyance.

"Hello, Mother." Siena grumbled. She may have resembled Aunt Gabrielle in looks, but Siena was definitely opposite to her mother in personality.

"Hey guys." Uncle Simon greeted as he placed the box of equipment down on the table.

"How did Istanbul go?" Gabrielle asked.

"We pulled the Istanbul job three months ago, Mom. We just got back from the Louvre." Siena's annoyance with the presence of her mother was only growing.

"Alright. Well then, how did the Louvre go?"

Dmitri answered for them. "Actually it was pretty interesting. There was this-Ow!" Siena cut her brother off with a kick to his shin. It was better that they didn't tell their mother that they, some of the best thieves in the world, had gotten caught red handed by a 15 year old girl.

"We got in. We stole. We got out." Mac shrugged. Gabrielle raised a disbelieving eyebrow at their cover up, but let it go without further questioning.

"Uncle Simon, we were wondering if you could help us on this statue heist we're planning?" Siena asked in her sweetest voice.

"Sorry, guys. Kat has me working on a big job coming up. I haven't got anytime to spare." Simon said apologetically.

"Told you so." Dmitri muttered.

"Oh, that reminds me, Kitten." Gabrielle spun back towards the table. "You're mother told me to tell you that…What are you wearing, young lady?" Gabrielle was distracted by Siena's choice in clothing. "Are those cargo pants?" She had always been appalled by the fact that her daughter had not inherited her sense of fashion.

It was a constant source of tension between them that Siena refused to wear heels or dresses of any sort.

Siena buried her face in her hands and groaned. "Mooooom!"

Beside her Dmitri snickered and was rewarded with another hard kick in the shins.

"You have a pretty face and you've got my figure, you know. Why do you insist on ruining it by wearing boy's clothing? How do you expect to con any business men or dukes when you look like this?"

"We've been over this, Mother. I don't have to wear mini skirts be a good con artist!"

"Well, I'm just saying maybe you would be an even better Con artist if you did."

"I'm not listening to this anymore." Siena stormed from the room and up the stairs.

Gabrielle threw her hands up in frustration. "I don't know how I ended up with such a difficult girl for a daughter." She too stormed from the room, leaving a trail of perfume behind her.

"And that is why I don't have kids." Uncle Simon muttered as he fiddled with a motherboard.

"Surrrre, that's why Uncle Simon." Dmitri muttered. Simon had never married or to the kids knowledge dated anyone in a long time.

Simon and Mac became engaged in a conversation about repelling equipment and Dmitri got another bowl of soup.

Since that night in the Louvre, James had been carrying around the leather satchel the girl had left behind. Within it's contents he found a wallet that held a student ID for Abercorn Academy. On the smooth plastic ID card was the smiling image of a girl James had met only once. He knew very little about her. Just her name and where she went to school. But the only fact about Natalie West that really mattered was that she had gotten in and out of the Louvre undetected, by herself.

He was vaguely aware that Siena had returned to her seat at the table and the others were once again discussing plans.

"Is that the chick from the Louvre?" Dmitri asked, as he spotted the card in James hands.

"Um, focus please!" Siena said. "There isn't much time before our window of opportunity closes so we have to agree on a plan. I say the Mermaid lagoon might work."

"Fine. But you have to dress up as the mermaid this time, sis. That tail gave me a rash." Dmitri said.

Siena backed away from the idea at the mention of having to doll herself up. "Never mind, then."

James returned to examining the ID card. He was contemplating taking a large risk. He knew next to nothing about this girl and his idea might put the entire family business in jeopardy. Was it worth the risk?

"Dog in a bar?" Mac suggested.

Siena sighed and shook her head. "We don't have enough people to pull that one off."

James made his decision. "Numbers won't be a problem anymore

"What? Have you figured out some way to clone us?" Dmitri joked.

"No. We're about to make a new friend."

_**Tell me what you think. I'm always happy to receive a review whether good or bad. Next update will be on Friday. **_


	3. A Very Strange Dream

_**Why HEllO there. Again thank you for you awesome reviews. You have no idea how happy it makes me to see your thoughts on my writing, sooooo keep 'em coming. I apologize because this chapter doesn't have much action it's just to introduce you to Natalie. The actual story will pick up a bit more in the next few chapters, but for now please bear with me. Enjoy. **_

Natalie West woke to the sound of heavy rain hitting her windowpane. She reluctantly rolled out of her duvet cocoon and tiptoed to the closet across the cold wooden floor. It was another rainy day in London.

Natalie lived in her family's Kensington home by herself. The West family was extremely wealthy, but they didn't get there by chance. Natalie's family was very hard working. Her father was the owner and CEO of several enormous companies that spread all across the world. Her mother was a lawyer in the supreme court of justice. Success was not optional in the West Family. And in Natalie's world, nothing defined you more than your last name.

Although American by birth and heritage, Natalie had spent her childhood moving between the French and Italian countrysides. She now lived in London, England where she attended the prestigious Abercorn Academy for Young Woman, just as all the woman of her family had for generations before her. Natalie loved London, but she spent most of her weekends and holidays visiting her childhood homes in France.

As expected for a member of the West family, Natalie was brilliant. She was top of all her classes, expect for one. Mathematics was her downfall, and she placed second behind Mary Crawford. This was a fact that never went unmentioned at family diners.

Still, as long as Natalie kept up her stellar grades, no one questioned when she skipped school for a few days to visit Monaco or their skiing lodge in Germany.

Natalie dressed herself in her usual uniform of a plaid skirt, white blouse and black flats. She pulled on her favorite Donna Karen cardigan to combat the chill and sat down in front of the vanity to brush out her dark chocolate brown hair.

She had her father's large, striking deep brown eyes. They seemed to dominate over her other soft, olive-toned features, bestowed upon her by her mother's side of the gene pool. Natalie's wavy hair cascaded down to her mid back. Any attempt on Natalie's part to control her hair was futile, so like always she just left it alone rather than hopelessly trying to pull it into a bun.

She grabbed her completed homework off the desk and stuffed it into her bag. Since the loss of her favorite satchel in Paris, Natalie had been using her Marc Jacobs bag to carry her books.

When she arrived in the kitchen she found the maid, Mia, already hard at work. Mia had been with the family since Natalie was a little girl, and she was Natalie's most trusted friend.

The West family was always busy with either work or charity events or some other large-scale project. This meant that Natalie rarely saw her parents other than during the holidays. She was a youthful 15 years of age so her parents had left her under the care of a governess, Ms. Cane, whom Natalie hadn't seen in four years, and was now cashing her large pay checks from the Tuscan countryside. Of course, this gave Natalie all the freedom she could needed, so she wouldn't have it any other way.

Natalie thanked Mia when she placed a plate full of waffles down in front of her. She wasn't really hungry but she made an effort for Mia's sake.

"How was Paris?" Mia inquired as she busied herself cleaning up the kitchen.

"The same as always." Natalie lied. Not even Mia knew about her late night Louvre break-ins. So she certainly couldn't tell her about her encounter with thieves.

"Oh," Natalie remembered, "I brought back some of those pastries from the bakery you like. I put them in the pantry." Mia had always had a sweet tooth.

"Where do you plan to go this weekend coming?" Mia asked as she nibbled on a pastry, obviously content.

She knew how restless Natalie was. Natalie couldn't seem to find anything that really interested her, or held that interest for very long. She was constantly traveling, looking for something. The problem was, she had no idea what she was really looking for.

"I thought I might go to Barcelona. Maybe leave Friday night. Would you like to come?"

"No, I've got work to finish up here. But you go, have fun." Mia didn't like planes, or boats for that matter, so Natalie often traveled alone.

"Are you not having any breakfast?" Natalie inquired as she saw Mia putting on her rain jacket.

"I've already eaten. And I've got to get down to the market before all the good fruits have gone."

"Oh, alright."

Mia waved goodbye as she exited the door. "Have a good day at school. And by that I mean, actually go to school." She teased.

Natalie ignored her jibe "Goodbye, Mia."

Mia departed and Natalie was left alone with her thoughts. Not hungry, she pushed the waffles aside, and picked up the Parisian newspaper, reading through the article for the hundredth time.

That night in the Louvre was firmly planted in her memory, but without the article as proof, Natalie wondered if she would have just discounted it all as a dream. A very strange dream.

With coffee in hand, and shielded under the hood of her raincoat, Natalie trudged up the rain soaked steps to Abercorn Academy. The school waited, draped in ivy, for the wealthiest young woman in the city to sleepily file through it's open doors on their way to their morning classes.

A strange feeling seemed to tap Natalie on the shoulder, willing her to turn around. Had she ignored it, she might have continued on to her Ancient History class that morning. But as it was, she didn't. Curiosity was in her nature. Natalie paused on the steps and turned to look behind her. Standing across the street in the drizzling London rain, was a boy from a dream. A very strange dream.

_**Ugh, you have no idea how painful it was not to post yesterday. I think going the entire weekend without updating might kill me, but I'm trying to stick to a schedule. I'll post chapter four on Monday. But for now let me now, leave me a review and make my day (or life).**_ **_-Niephora_**


	4. Coffee and Cake

_**Hello all you beautiful people! Last night I passed 100 views and I did a little happy dance (there was some joyful squeaking involved, my dogs thought I had gone mad). But you know what would make me even more happy? Reviews! Good or bad. Doesn't matter. And thanks once again to Moogie who left a review! To answer your question Natalie speaks five languages: English, French, Italian, Greek, and German. Sooooo you know what to do, read, enjoy, review! (Do it, come on, you know you want to)**_

Natalie sat in the corner booth of a small cafe in London, with a warm cup of coffee in front of her, and shielded away from the rain outside. On any other day Natalie might have been at ease there. But not that day. Because sitting across from her was a very mysterious boy, whom she had met three days prior in unusual circumstances.

James wasted no more time with pleasantries. He wasn't the type to speak frivolously.

"There is a solid gold statue of the Greek god Hermes. It's dated back ancient Greece; it's close to 2500 years old. A historical piece like that is priceless and it's currently sitting in a vault in Florence." He spoke quietly, as if he shouldn't be telling her this. But he maintained a calm and collected appearance. It struck Natalie that this was someone who knew how to stay cool under pressure and did so often.

"Let me guess, you want to steal it."

"What can I say, it's in my nature." James shrugged innocently. "But it's not the statue I'm really interested in. It's the story behind it." He had Natalie's full attention.

"There was an old Greek family, the Petrakis. For generations the statue, along with several other artifacts and paintings, was passed down through the family. It was sacred to them. It was a sort of symbol of the family's prosperity and heritage. But 60 years ago, a young businessman, a certain Mr. Gregory White, conned the head of the Petrakis family into investing in his company. Long story short, they lost everything. White completely destroyed the family and took everything they had spent generations building, including..."

"The statue of Hermes." Interjected Natalie.

"Right. Now we thieves don't really follow rules, but we do have a code of honor of sorts. We never con an honest man. The Petrakis were honest people. They didn't deserve what White did to them."

"So you want to steal it back. Set things right."

"Exactly. It's just a little more complicated than that. Since White obtained the statue he's had it under lock and key. But White isn't the young man he once was. And now he wants the guilt of having the statue off his back so he's planning to sell it a museum in Italy."

"If he wants to get rid of the guilt then why not just give it back to the Petrakis?"

James smiled at her, as if she were just a naive child. "White may have a conscious, but that doesn't make him a saint. If he's going to part with his prize, then he is going to get some sort of compensation."

"I don't understand, what's the complication. If White is going to be moving the statue to the museum, then wouldn't this be a perfect opportunity to steal it?"

"Yes, but we're not the only people who want that statue. There are whispers circling among thieves that another crew from Australia has been hired by one Romeo Cane to steal the statue from White."

"Aw," Natalie took a sip of her coffee "so there's competition."

"And not just any competition. The Aussies are good, very good. Every job we set our sights on, the Aussies beat us to the punch. They're led by Sam Blacker. A brilliant thief, but he hasn't got much of a conscious."

"So your rivals, of sorts?"

James nodded and studied the happenings on the busy street in front of the cafe.

The whole thing sounded like a dangerous affair. Natalie should have left when she had the chance, this wasn't her fight, but it was too late now. Curiosity had taken hold of her. "Why does Cane want the statue stolen? Couldn't he just buy it off of White?"

"White and Cane have bloody history between them. But that's too long of a story to tell. Having the Aussies steal the statue is just another way to get at White."

"This is starting to sound like a game of revenge between bored little boys."

James face grew serious, and something about it made Natalie uncomfortable. "No. This is about having honor."

"I thought there was no honor among thieves." Natalie teased, trying to lighten the mood.

The smirk returned to James face and he relaxed a little. "That's debatable."

"This all sounds pretty dangerous." Natalie remarked.

James gave a smug shrug. "We're thieves. Dangerous is sort of our thing."

"And why might I ask, have you shared this all with me?"

"There are four of us in the crew. If we are to have a hope in hell at pulling this off we need more people. And you have already show us your... impressive skill set." James seemed to think that she was skilled at breaking and entering: A logical conclusion since they had met in the Louvre in the middle of the night. But she was only able to break in because of her grandfather's skill, not by her own wit. Natalie knew she wasn't as impressive as James thought she was, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth.

James didn't strike Natalie as a boy who was used to begging. Which made her want to see him on his knees.

She took another sip of her coffee, making him wait. "Well?" He asked impatiently tapping his fingers on the table.

"You haven't asked a question." Natalie leaned back in her chair. She was in control now and it was her turn to smirk.

After a few seconds of a stare down, James pushed his pride back and groaned. "Fine. Will you join our crew?"

Natalie expertly arched an eyebrow at him.

"Please." He added, finally admitting defeat.

Natalie was on board from the minute James had opened his mouth. She was intrigued by the secret world that had just opened up in front of her and she suddenly wanted nothing more than to be a part of it. So Natalie shook hands with the mysterious boy sitting across the table, and refused to look back. But even still, an old saying whispered in the back of her mind. Curiosity killed the cat.

"I'm in." She said confidently.

James smiled in return. "Excellent."

Natalie took another sip of her coffee and asked. "So, will I be the only new addition or are there others?"

"Well, ideally we could use a few more people but we just don't have to much time. Unless your skill set includes computers, we have no one in the crew that can handle the technology." He sighed, obviously frustrated.

Immediately a thought sprung into Natalie's mind. "Personally, I'm hopeless with computers, but I might know someone who can help."

James visibly perked up. "Really, who?"

Natalie smiled at memories. "An old friend."

The pair stood in front of a large home in downtown Berlin. The had come in search of Natalie's technologically gifted friend in the hopes of gaining a new crew member,

"Right, so remind me why we had to detour all the way to Vienna before coming here?" James had been annoyed by the waste of time. They were on a tight schedule.

"We couldn't just walk in empty handed and demand her help. There is a very specific why you have to go about these things with her. She's got a bit of a temper." In her hands, Natalie held a box from a very specific bakery in Vienna.

The house was guarded by two policemen standing in front of the door.

"What's with the muscle?" James inquired. Thieves and cops didn't mix especially well and James seemed tense.

"She's under house-arrest." Natalie explained. "No ones allowed in and she's not allowed out."

"What?" James was getting impatient. "You mean to say that she's under police surveillance 24-7. How exactly do you consider her a good option for this job?"

"Well, I didn't expect a thief would have such a problem with illegal activity." Natalie teased. She led the way up towards the door and stopped in front of the guards. Natalie took two stacks of bills out from her bag and handed them off to the guards with a discreet nod. They let the pair pass through without any complaint.

James and Natalie made there way upstairs to the bedrooms. None of the staff questioned them. Secret meetings were regular practice in this household, and they knew better than to interfere in their employer's business interactions. No one wanted to anger her and risk her full wrath.

When they came to the room at the end of the upstairs hallway, Natalie knocked four times and then again 2 times and then entered. The room appeared normal. There was a king sized bed in the middle of the room and a desk and a few book selves. But Natalie paid no attention to the room and walked directly into the walk in closet. The closet was any girly-girl's dream. Rows upon rows of designer shoes and handbags lined one wall and the others were crowded with clothing from the likes of Alexander McQueen, Prada, Gucci, and of course, Dior.

James raised an eyebrow when Natalie pushed aside the dresses on the rack of the back wall and knocked once again.

The center of the wall suddenly flung open like a door and made them both jump.

"What?" Someone shouted from inside the room. The hidden room was covered in wires, various screens, keyboards and controllers. Pictures of various delicious looking cakes and cupcakes covered the walls.

A large chair spun around to reveal the girl they had come to see.

The tiny girl's voice softened at the sight of Natalie. "Daarrrrling!" She coed. "It's so lovely to see you!" As the girl rose from the chair to kiss Natalie's cheeks James took in the sight of her.

Kai Collins was a petite sixteen-year-old girl of Japanese decent. She rose to about 4 and half feet tall but tittered around on six-inch heels. Her face was painted with the most expensive makeup money could buy and she was decked out in designer wear from head to toe. Kai was the type of girl that meticulously maintained her appearance. But that wasn't to say she was an airhead.

Kai was one of the best hackers in the world. She was a natural born technological master. Hacking the pentagon was a morning exercise for Kai. She made millions by the time she was 12 by fixing the online stocks and doing several hired hacking jobs for some important business people.

On the one occasion she had slipped up whilst hacking into the German government's system she had been caught and put under house arrest. Although she couldn't leave her house, Kai had easily bribed the police force into allowing her all the technology and visitors she desired. Being trapped inside her own home did nothing to slow her destructive process. She now held a personal grudge against the German Government and spent most of her free time screwing up their systems from the comfort of her own closet.

Natalie had met Kai before the German Government incident when she attended Abercorn Academy in London with her. It had been clear even at the age of 14 that Kai was a genius with both fashion and computers.

She also had a weakness for pastries. Her absolute favorites came from a bakery in Vienna, which she was now unable to visit due to her house arrest sentence.

Kai settled back into her oversized chair that seemed to swallow up her tiny frame. "Ooh, who's this?" She looked James up and down with a flirty smile.

"This is James Bishop." Natalie did the introduction. "We have a business proposition for you, Cake." Natalie used her friend's old nickname endearingly, hopping to butter her up.

"Ah, so you want my help?" Cake eyed the pastry box in Natalie's hands.

"I almost forgot," Natalie smiled innocently. "I brought you your favorite."

"Raspberry and chocolate?" Cake inquired hungrily.

"With the cream in the middle, of course." Natalie smiled as she handed over the box to an excited Cake.

As she dug into her cake, Kai spoke. "So tell me about his business proposal. Is it illegal?"

"Yes." James answered this time.

"Excellent!" Cake grinned.

Natalie and James explained the basic premise of the job. They would steal the statue whilst it was in transit.

"Of course there will be plenty more where that came from." Natalie gestured to cake. "And since we'll be in Italy I'm sure we can find time to stop by Milan and pick up those new Gucci heels from the fall collection."

"Say no more, darling." Cake smiled. "I'm your girl." Cake had no need for money, so she only accepted pastry and heels as payments for her services.

"How do you plan to get passed the guards at your door?" James inquired.

"No need, Sugar. I can hack into anything from right here."

"And if there's any physical set up required, Cake can just talk us through it on the phone." Natalie added.

"So it's settled." The tiny teenage girl smiled mischievously. "Just one more thing. Did you bring anymore cake?"

_**And thus is your introduction to Cake :) Next chapter Natalie meets the crew. Whoot! I'll update next on Wensday. Or maybe tuesday night because I'm so impatient. Please Review. It makes me happy. **_


	5. Thick As Thieves

Night descended upon the Italian countryside as the train whisked past rolling hills and vineyards. Natalie had always loved the dark. To her, night was a calming presence that hid her in plan sight. And she was never more comfortable than when she was invisible.

Across the compartment, James spoke into a cell phone in rapid Russian. It wasn't the first time Natalie wished she understood the beautiful language. She hated being on the outside of a conversation and especially hated not being able to understand it. Natalie was exhausted from the dramatic rise and falls of the day. Her movements felt heavy and she struggled to keep her mind from wondering into a haze.

James snapped the phone shut and opened the train window. "The crew will meet us there. " He casually discarded the used cell phone out the window. "They're all excited to meet the new addition to the team."

"Well, they might be disappointed. " Natalie sighed. "I don't know the first thing about being a thief."

"You'll learn. It's not easy, but it's addictive."

"Yes, you certainly seem hooked."

He shrugged. "I don't have much of a choice in the matter. It's in my blood."

Natalie's curiosity peaked again. "Are you parents thieves?"

He nodded. "It's sort of a family business." James said it with the same sort of pride that someone might say their parents were doctors, or firefighters.

"Are they good? Your parents, I mean."

"The very best." James smiled to himself, remembering the many jobs he had pulled with his mother and father. Some families went to the Zoo to _see_ the tigers. Other families went to the Zoo to _steal_ the tigers.

"Are you sure they won't miss you at school? I've never been to high school but I've heard that they generally require you to attend at least some of your classes." James said.

Natalie dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. "There's nothing I can't catch up on later. Besides, I pay 50 thousand a year to attend the Academy. They won't question me if it means risking my enrollment next year."

James shrugged and looked out the window. "We will be in the city within a few hours. We'll rendezvous with the others at the base. You should rest. I'll wake you up when we get there."

A stubborn look crossed her face. "What? And leave my fate in the hands of a con artist? No, I think I'll stay awake, thanks." Her statement was contradicted by a long yawn.

"Natalie," James said authoritatively "go to sleep." She mumbled something sarcastic in response but soon slipped into a deep slumber.

James couldn't doze off. His thoughts keep him occupied. What if he had made a mistake? What if bringing this girl into the crew would bring the family business crashing down? His mother had taken the same risk once. If she hadn't been a step ahead of Nick the entire time he would have destroyed her.

Natalie was cunning and risky. As he watched her sleeping face he wondered if he could manage to stay a step ahead of her. James felt as if he had just brought the horse inside the gates of Troy. And if history repeated it's self, he would be responsible for burning generations of work to ash.

The 'base' turned out to be an old, neglected house. Its wooden shutters were coming off their hinges and the steps leading up to the door looked more than a little unsafe. There was a kind of sad charm about the old building.

At one point in time, the house would have been beautiful home for a wealthy family. It had been constructed in the traditional Italian style many years ago. Natalie could picture flowers spilling from the now empty pots on the windowsills and children playing in the street in front. But the house had been neglected and its lively Mediterranean feel had faded to a grayed shadow. It was tucked away between two well-kept houses, where no one would really notice it.

The seemingly abandoned house would be an excellent place for hiding away from the eyes of the city.

"Home, sweet home." James smirked as he tired to gage Natalie's reaction. Seeing as she was an heiress, accustom to the very best, he was expecting her to throw a temper tantrum at the sight of the place. He was slightly disappointed when she said.

"It's beautiful." Something about the sad old house attracted Natalie. It looked like a place that held many forgotten memories, and kept them safe from the outside world. "Do you live here?"

"No," James said. "We don't really live anywhere. At least not for any extended period of time. We'll use this place until the job is done and then we move on."

Natalie nodded in comprehension. Still, it seemed like an odd way to live to her, without a single place to call home. "So you have no home?"

Something made James hesitant to tell Natalie about the brownstone in Brooklyn. It was the family hub, where they always met before pulling a heist. And it contained all the memories of his childhood. They didn't live there for long periods of time, but it was their home nonetheless.

James just shrugged in reply. "Home is where the family is."

The door was unlocked but opened with a resistant creak. It was futile to lock the door. Any company the group had could easily pick the lock.

The house was covered in a thick layer of dust. All the furniture was protected by white sheets, and pushed up against the walls. Despite its small appearance from the outside, Natalie was surprised at how spacious the house was inside.

James led the way up the wooden stairs that protested under their weight. Despite the scurrying of a few rats, Natalie could see no signs of life around. But when they reached the top of the stairs, she could hear grunting and the sound of voices coming from the room across the hall.

As they stepped inside, two teenage boys wrestling on the floor came into view. A red haired boy seemed to have the other one easily pinned.

James rolled his eyes and sighed. "I don't see the point in the constant rematches, you know Mac is going to win every time."

"It's a matter of pride, J." The dark haired boy protested. The boys detangled themselves and got to their feet.

"Just stick to explosives, Dmitri." James joked.

Natalie vaguely recognized the dark-haired boy from the night in the Louvre. He was taller than she remembered and he had a thin lean frame. The boy's skin was a deep tanned color that matched his dark hair. But his eyes were strikingly opposite. They were a bright green shade that was somewhat unsettling. His facial features were pointed and elf like, and he had an impish grin.

The second boy was fair with red hair. He looked altogether like a sturdy person. He had a strong, square jaw and a face that showed little emotion. He was shorter than James but had a stocky, muscular build.

James made the introductions. "Guys this is Natalie West. Natalie, meet the crew."

The boy with the green eyes looked her over and gave an impish smile. "Ah so this is the famous 'girl from the Louvre'. Well, Natalie you certainly don't disappoint." He smiled flirtatiously.

Out on an open balcony, someone dropped from the roof. A teenage girl, with the same coloring as the boy, rose from a crouch. "Just ignore my brother, he thinks he's charming." The girl was more than a little intimidating. She was strikingly beautiful with her bright green eyes and long dark hair. Like her brother she had a tall, lean frame that belonged on a catwalk.

"Hey!" The brother protested.

"These are the twins. Dmitri and Siena Antokov." James nodded in their direction. Siena smiled kindly.

"That's Mac Bagshaw." He gestured to the red haired boy. "And you already know me."

"James, didn't you say we were two new additions?" Siena inquired.

"That would be me." A voice sung from a laptop on the coffee table and startled them all. Cake's smiling image appeared on the screen. "Kai Collins." She introduced herself. "But you, darlings, can call me Cake."

The crew murmured a few hellos towards the new girl in the screen.

"Um, wouldn't it be a little more helpful if she were, you know, here?" Dmitri raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"No need," Natalie explained. "Cake can hack into anywhere from her room."

Dmitri just shrugged and accepted the notation but Mac looked a little doubtful.

"It'll be fine, Mac." James assured him. "If we have to set anything up manually, Cake will talk us through it."

"We don't have much time. We should get started." Siena cut in.

The crew dove into plans for the upcoming heist and before long the group was as thick as thieves.


	6. Amsterdam

_**Okkay. So earlier this week there was a mix up about chapters. I accidentally re posted chapter one in chapter five's place. I post my chapters a 6am, and as is obvious from this mistake, I am not a morning person. I was oblivious to the mistake until Moogie pointed it out to me (Thanks Moogie, where would I be without you). Anyways it's fixed now but I just want to apologize for any confusion. I decided to make it up to you and I will post the next chapter tomorrow (Saturday) rather than wait until Monday, my usual posting time. So once again, sorry about the mix up it won't happen again. You know the drill: Read, Enjoy, Review!**_

The crew was sprawled out around the top floor of the old house. Blue prints, diagrams, and travel schedules covered every surface. The evidence of meals of from the past few days were discarded in the overflowing trash can downstairs. They had been planning for the past three days. Brain storming ideas, drawing up plans and gathering equipment. As heists went, this one would be fairly simple. They would take the place of security guards responsible for transporting the statue and other goods, then switch the statue for a fake and slip from the scene unnoticed. Still they had two new additions to the crew so it wasn't a usual easy job.

James was relentless. He insisted on going over the plans again and again. The crew lay about the room as James paced the floor, showering them with questions about the plan.

"Alright, once more." James repeated for what seemed like the hundredth time that afternoon. His insistence was met with a chorus of groans. "Mac will take the drivers seat at which point Dmitri will-"

"Disable the padlock on back doors. " Dmitri called from his place on the couch. He had hidden himself beneath layers of blueprints.

"Then Siena w-" James was cut off again, this time by Siena.

"Help Dmitri and Natalie unload the cargo, then make the pass off to you, and then you disappear into the crowd and Mac gets rid of the truck. Jay, we know the plan inside out. It's sweet and simple. Nothing can go wrong." Siena was sitting on the railing of the balcony, surveying the streets below.

It occurred to Natalie that Siena looked most comfortable when she could see everything that was going on around her. It seemed to make her uneasy and stressed when she didn't have complete control over the situation.

Her bother on the other hand never looked even slightly stressed in the most risky situations. Dmitri was one of those people who seemed to have everyone under their thumb without even having to try. He may have been a pretty laid back guy, but there was no doubt in Natalie's mind that he was far more intelligent than he let on.

Mac sat off in the corner, fiddling with what looked like a piece of an engine. Mac wasn't like the others, he was much more difficult to figure out. He hardly ever spoke more then a few words and his face never seemed to break its usual subdued mask. Natalie had no idea what to make of him, and even less of an idea about what he thought of her.

She was so wrapped up in her any analysis of the crew that she almost didn't hear James say quietly "Right, nothing can go wrong. We said the same thing about Amsterdam." His words were soft spoken but the crew's reaction was immediate.

Suddenly the air seemed to change and a suffocating silence filled the room. Looking around, Natalie saw that they all sat tense and ridged, like someone had just thrown a grenade into the room and no one wanted to move for fear of setting it off. The boy's faces were stone cold and Siena looked like she was about to cry. Finally the silence was broken.

"I thought we agreed not to discuss that anymore." Mac spoke in a low voice that was almost a growl.

"We can't just pretend it didn't happen." James protested. His words did nothing to diffuse the situation; they only seemed to make it worse. The tension was growing rapidly.

Seemingly not able to stand the atmosphere, Siena left her post on the balcony and strode across the room, departing down the stairs without a word. Siena was one of the boys, and she wasn't about to jeopardize that status by showing weakness and crying in front of them.

After a few seconds Mac followed her out of the room.

There was a long moment of silence again. Dmitri still sat tense on the couch, refusing to look at anything but the wall across the room. Sighing with frustration, James looked over at him. "Dmitri?" His voice was almost pleading. He seemed to want some sort of sign, some kind of signal that he was forgiven for bringing up a painful memory. But Dmitri just sighed.

"What was-What just happened?" Natalie was more than a little out of place.

The boys' heads whipped around to look at her, as if they had just remembered she was there.

"Nothing." James dismissed her inquiry.

Natalie was about to insist that it was obviously not nothing, but never got the chance, because just then Cake's image appeared on the laptop screen. "Darlings, we've got a problem." Cake surveyed the scene and noticed the apparent tension. "Ookay, maybe we have two problems."

They all stood facing the laptop on the table. Any feelings of tension about the mention of the Amsterdam incident had all but disappeared. The crew was brought back to their usual selves the minute Cake skped in to update them on the situation. Despite their apparent on-going personal problems, business came first.

"Alright darlings, I've been monitoring the chatter on our good friend Mr. White's phone and we have a slight problem. It seems someone has tipped off White that there was a robbery planned to happen during the transport of the statue. And it's my educated guess that that someone was-"

"Blacker." James groaned, rubbing his temples.

"He couldn't get his hands on the travel information for the statue so rather than let us get there first he sabotaged the entire job." Dmitri joined in. "Well, that guy's a piece of work."

"Wait, so because Blacker told White we were coming, the entire heist is shot?" Natalie was slightly confused.

Dmitri filled her in "Thieving 101. Lesson 17" By this point even Natalie was rolling her eyes at Dmitri's 'Lessons' "It is always easier to steal something whilst in transit. There are a thousand ways security can mess up during transport, which gives us a thousand chances to take advantage."

James took over the teaching. "And now that White knows we're planning to steal his precious statue he will double the security. Which would make any attempt to steal the statue in transport extremely risky."

"Well then why don't we just pull the heist when the statue is in the museum?" Natalie suggested.

"Still, extremely risky." James said.

Natalie wasn't the kind of girl to walk away from a task because it seemed difficult. In fact that usually just made her more determined. "I'm sorry, I was under the impression that you were all world class thieves. 'Dangerous is sort of our thing.'" She quoted James' words.

A light seemed to come on behind James' eyes, like Natalie's challenge had woken some devilish spirit inside of him. Siena must have seen it too, because she spoke before he had the chance to.

"No, James. No. This is a stupid idea."

Dmitri's face broke into an impish grin. "Are you serious? We're actually doing this?"

"No. No we are not" Siena insisted. "James, maybe, just maybe we could pull something like this off if we had a full experienced crew, but we don't. We have two rookies. This isn't a job for rookies."

"Excuse me. I'm not okay with being called a rookie." Cake chimed in from the screen. "It sounds so juvenile. How about Nouveau, that sounds much more classy."

"I'm in, J." Dmitri laughed.

"Dmitri, stop encouraging him!" Siena was not amused.

"Oh come on, Siena. It's not like were robbing the Henley. Please S." James used her pet name with great affection, trying to butter her up.

"James, I don't think you understand the situation. We have two rookies. Sorry Cake, 'Nouveau's. The place will be crawling with security, as well as being highly publicized. Also Blacker and his entire crew of trained professionals are going to be competing against us for the statue. Oh, yes there is also the small problem that we have less then a week until the museum gala. So no James, it's not the Henley, but it's damn close!"

Dmitri ignored his sister's rant. "You in Cake? Natalie?"

Cake sighed. "Well, it's not me that will be arrested if this goes the way of the flare cut jeans." James and Dmitri at each other, confused.

"That was a yes. She's in and so am I." Natalie had come this far; she was not about the turn back.

"Mac?" James asked.

Mac looked at Siena apologetically and spoke in his adorable British accent. "Sorry, S."

They all looked to Siena. Finally breaking down, she groaned. "Agh, fine. Someone has to watch over you idiots, or else you'd probably blow you selves up."

"Great!" The light still danced in James' eyes. "Now that that's settled, we have six days, so we had better get started."

_**Don't forget to check back tomorrow and Monday for the next chapters. Review! (Like seriously people, talk to me, I'm getting lonely)**_


	7. Unreliable Bricks

**Gooooood Morning! Or good whatever time of day it is for you. Moogie I think I should tell you that you kind of, like, really AWESOME. Seriously thanks so much for your support. And as for the rest of you, you should definitely _not_ enjoy, and _not_ review. (I'm trying out this reverse phycology technique. We'll see if it works) Chapter 7, here we go:**

The crew had stayed up all night. They had been forced to go back to the drawing board and come up with an entirely new heist. As the sun rose that morning, the countdown began. They had only six days left, and not a chance in hell.

Natalie sat with Siena on the patio of a café, watching the comings and goings in the museum across the street. As Natalie was learning, surveillance and preparation were extremely important to the success of a heist and they didn't have nearly enough time for either.

Reviewing the situation over again in her head, Natalie was starting to lose her confidence. Thanks to Blacker, security would have every entrance and exit covered. The press would be everywhere, meaning any and every detail of the robbery would be splashed across the newspapers the very next morning. And Blacker's crew was three steps ahead of them by now. This was hardly an ideal situation.

"Maybe you were right. I'm not so sure this is a good idea."

Siena snorted. "You're just realizing this now? Well it's too late, James has got the idea in his head and good luck trying to change that boy's mind."

"He's pretty stubborn, huh?"

"Uncle Hale always says he is almost as stubborn as his mother. It runs in the family, I guess. Guards are changing shifts. Time?"

"10:26"

Siena scrawled the information on a notepad beside her and took another sip of her latte.

"What is it like? Working with your family, I mean, and doing what you do?"

"I don't know. Like it's always been I guess. I've never known anything but this life. I was born a thief and I'll die a thief." Natalie watched Siena's face as she responded. She seemed indifferent on the subject.

It struck Natalie once again just how beautiful Siena actually was. She wore no makeup and let her hair tangle up in a long ponytail. She was dressed in loose fitting cargo pants, old sneakers and a grey tee shirt. But despite her best efforts to hide it, Siena was stunning.

Natalie understood why she wanted to cover up. Until Natalie and Cake came along, she was the only girl in the crew. Siena lived and worked in a world run by men. No one would take her seriously if she wore makeup or painted her nails. She seemed perfectly content the way she was, but still Natalie thought it was a little sad that Siena could never embrace the fact that she was a girl without losing respect as a thief.

"So obviously you and Dmitri are twins. And James is your cousin, right?"

"Second cousins. Our mother's were cousins." Siena clarified.

"What about Mac? He's part of the family right?"

"Mac is a Bagshaw, which makes him family but not biological family."

"How big is your family, anyway?"

Siena began counting her relatives off on her fingers. "Well, let's see there is Uncle Bobby, Uncle Simon, Uncle Hale, Aunt Kat, Uncle Hamish, and Uncle Angus and their spouses. Then there's Ro, Fred and Charlie, Mac's cousins. And then there is the extended family. So let's just say, pretty big."

Natalie's head was spinning with names.

Siena laughed. "I'll draw you up a chart sometime." The conversation dropped and they returned to their surveillance for a while.

"Hey, do you think we could jump from that building onto the museum roof?" Suggested Natalie.

"Nah, it's too far." It seemed like just then an idea sprung up in Siena's thoughts. "But maybe we won't have to _jump_."

"How exactly is this going to work?" Natalie was a little more than skeptical of the gun like contraption in Dmitri's arms.

"Don't worry about it, girly. It's real simple. We just put in a few numbers, point and shoot, the cord will attach it's self to the wall. And, Tad da! Instant zip line!" Dmitri's explanation didn't ease her mind. "It's completely legitimate. My Uncle Simon designed it."

Somehow, Natalie had been recruited to test out the zip line system with Mac and Dmitri. They were on the roof of a seven story abandoned building. The place seemed to be crumbling to pieces, but Cake had said that the distances between the two buildings were the same as the distance between the museum and it's adjacent building, making it the perfect place to run the test.

Natalie watched on as Mac and Dmitri set up the gun. She was trying to remember as much as possible, so if the time came when she was the one firing the gun, she would be ready.

The rest of the crew was well acquainted with zip lining over great heights as they had done so on several heists. Natalie had never zip lined before so James suggested she try it out before the day of the actual heist. The last thing they would need was her freaking out while they were trying to make a get away.

"Alright, we're all set." Dmitri pointed the large contraption at the building across the gap. It wasn't too far away, maybe 14 feet, but it was a long way down. He pressed the trigger and a grappling hook, with the cord attached, shot into the air and grabbed onto the building's brick wall. Mac then proceeded to attach their end of the cord to the wall. It really was simple, Natalie thought to herself.

Dmitri turned and handed her a few pieces of equipment. "This is the harness. It attaches around the waist and shoulders and this clip is to hook it onto the cord." His usual playful tone was absent. Despite his juvenile personality, Dmitri knew when to be serious. "And this is the clamp. It goes over the line and you press it like this to slow yourself down. Got it?"

"Got it." Natalie replied.

His signature impish smile returned to his face. "Ladies first." He motioned for Natalie to hook herself up to the line.

"Yeah, right. There is no way I'm going first. One of you two has to test it out before I'm getting on that thing."

Dmitri looked at Mac, playing like he was offended. "Do you hear this? She doesn't trust us. After all this time, she still doesn't trust us."

"With good reason." Mac said.

Dmitri sighed. "Alas fair maiden," he joked, "I shall go first, because you wish it so." Natalie just rolled her eyes, but Dmitri was used to that response. It never fazed him.

He tightened his harness and hooked it up to the line. Dmitri pushed off with his legs and glided through open air. He used the clamp to slow him self before he reached the other side, coming to a smooth stop.

"See." He yelled back at them. "Easy as pie!"

There was a strange cracking sound. All that once, the old bricks that the grappling was hooked onto crumbled under Dmitri's weight and fell from the wall. With them Dmitri fell, but the cord was still attached to the other wall so he swung like a pendulum and hit the brick wall with a loud thud.

Mac and Natalie rushed to the edge and looked over. Dmitri hung from the cord a story bellow them.

"I'm okay." He croaked. The trio breathed a sigh of relief.

But the feeling was short lived. There was another cracking sound as the bricks holding up the cord began to crumble. Mac grabbed the end of the cord just as the bricks fell away. Dmitri's weight was too much for Mac to carry.

"I can't hold it for long!" Mac shouted. Bellow Dmitri desperately searched for something to grab onto. In a few second the weight would overcome Mac and Dmitri would plunge five stories to his death.

"Window! Get him through a window!" Mac grunted at Natalie. She understood.

Natalie sprinted back to the stairwell and flew down two flights as fast as she could. She could hear Dmitri and Mac's shouts as she ran. Natalie rushed to a window she could see Dmitri hanging a few feet away, but the window was sealed shut. In a panic Natalie searched the floor around her and her eyes locked onto a pile of bricks in the corner. Taking hold of the brick she rammed it at window and it shattered into a million pieces. She knocked away the remaining shards with the end of the brick, like they did in all the movies.

Dmitri swung on the end of the cord, a few feet away. His face was contorted with fear. Natalie leaned out the window towards him. "Dmitri, grab my hand!"

Their arms out stretched, their fingertips were inches away from each other. "I can't reach!" He shouted back.

"Swing!" Natalie commanded. "Swing and grab my hand!" Dmitri shifted his weight back and forth, slowly the cord began to move and with each swing Dmitri came closer.

From above, Mac shouted as the cord slipped from his hands. Dmitri's gaze met hers and things seemed to move in slow motion. He was suspended in the air. Dmitri was falling through emptiness towards the murderous ground bellow. His hair whipped around his face in the wind. Natalie would never forget the look of sheer terror and desperation in his eyes. That moment would haunt her nightmares for years to come.

At the last second, their hands met. For one horrible moment, she thought Dmitri's weight might drag her down with him, but he was able to pull himself upwards using the windowsill. Natalie dragged Dmitri through the window and they fell to the floor, exhausted.

Mac rushed through the doorway. The three of them were silent for a moment as they caught their breath. Then Dmitri looked up at Natalie with his signature smile, as if he hadn't almost just fallen to his death. "Girly, I'm starting to think you're bad luck."

_**Next Chapter will be up Monday. Have a great weekend! -Niephora **_


	8. Cliffs, Caves, and Cuts

_**Chapppter 8! Wow this is going by really fast! I don't think I mentioned it but there will be a total of 16 chapters in this story. So this is about the time in the story when action starts to happen and I'm really excited for you all to read it, especially next chapter, and I'd love to hear your reactions to it so review please! **_

"Well, I think it's become pretty clear from the surveillance that there's no way in from the front. Every entrance and exit will be air tight with the amount of security White plans to have." Siena reported her findings grimly.

"Alright, we'll just have to make our own entrance then. Is the roof an option?" James began the brainstorming again. "We might be able to pull a Heidi and the Mountain."

"Maybe, but the roof door can only be unlocked from the inside." Natalie joined the conversation.

"Is it digital? I might be able to over write it's programming." Cake suggested.

"No it's old fashioned, and heavy duty as well. Nothing we could pick in the time allowed."

"Heavy duty." Dmitri snorted. "Leave it to me. I'll blow the thing to hell before it even has a chance to beg for mercy."

"I appreciate the enthusiasm, Dmitri, but we're going for discrete here. Meaning, no explosives on the roof." James said diplomatically.

"But how about-" Dmitri pleaded his case.

"Not even a little one."

"Oh, come on-"

"Dmitri! No explosives!" Siena cut in. "The last thing we need is an Oxford repeat."

"That wasn't my fault." Dmitri protested.

"Oh, so I suppose the entirety of the University's history department just collapsed on it's own then." As the twins bickered, James began his pacing again. Mac sat in his usual seat in the corner and watched the twins with an expression of slight amusement.

The brainstorming continued for several minutes more.

"How about the King and All His Men?" Suggested Siena.

"Not nearly enough people, or time. The Weasleys, maybe?" James countered.

"I don't see how that one will work. We only have one ginger. Unless of course you plan to clone Mac in four days time." Said Dmitri.

The group finally came to the conclusion that no regular plan was going to work in this situation. They seemed to be out of ideas until James spoke.

"What about the back entrance to the museum?"

"There is no back entrance. The museum is balanced on the edge of a like 100 foot cliff looking over the ocean, remember?" Siena countered.

"42 feet from the looks of the buildings blue prints." Cake corrected.

"We might be able to scale the cliff."

"Not a good idea darling." Cake sighed. "According to his plans, White has at least three guards stationed at the top of the cliff. You'd be spotted in an instant."

"Well let's give it a look anyways. We might be missing something we haven't thought of yet. How fast can you get us a boat, Cake?" James asked.

Within a few clicks of her mouse, Cake replied. "Done. There's a boat waiting for you in the marina."

"Thanks Cake, you're the best."

Cake executed a perfect hair flip. "Darling, you flatter me! But it's true, I really am." Modesty was not in her vocabulary.

Dmitri groaned. "Just great, boats."

"What's wrong with boats?" Natalie inquired.

"Nothing." He replied. "Unless Mac is driving one." A grin now laced it's self across Mac's lips.

"Should I be scared?" Natalie asked Siena.

"You should be terrified."

They hit the next wave and for a few stomach-wrenching seconds they were air born. The boat landed back in the water, spending up salty spray into the air. Natalie didn't think she had ever gone this fast in her life. Their boat zipped around the bay at breakneck speeds.

Mac sat in the drivers seat. His usual mask of indifference was replaced by a joyous grin. As it turns out, that silent boy who sat in the corner was sort of a speed maniac.

Dmitri sat in the back, clinging for dear life to his seat. While Siena was at the very front, grinning almost as much as Mac. Natalie had to admit; it was sort of fun, in an absolutely terrifying way. Beside her, James laughed. His words from the café came back to her. 'Dangerous is sort of our thing.'

Mac slowed from his dare devil speed to a slow crawl as they approached the area of the museum's cliff. The museum backed onto a cliff. It's balconies hung over the edge. It was probably as stunning view from inside, but it proposed a monstrous challenge to them.

As they starred up at the enormous face of rock in front of them, Dmitri spoke first. "That's a damn big rock. Are we actually going to climb it, J?"

"We've climbed worst. Remember Monaco?"

Siena cut in. "Yeah, but it's not the climb that's the problem. The problem is the guys with guns that will be waiting at the top."

They sat there, rocking in the waves, brainstorming more ideas. In a few hours the sun would set and they would have only five days before the gala. They were running out of time. And every thief knows, time is the one thing you can't steal.

The tide was going out, and the water level on the cliff receded. Natalie watched waves splash against the white stone. The crew's conversation swirled around her. Again and again the water hit the cliff relentlessly.

Then the wave pulled back and something caught Natalie's eye. Something on the cliff wall, buried beneath the waves.

She nudged James with her elbow and nodded towards the base of the cliff.

"What is that? When the waves pull back. Do you see it?" James squinted, but he nodded.

"Yeah, I see it. Do you think it's-"

Dmitri broke their concentration. "What are you two squinting at?"

Without explanation, James pulled out a cell. "Cake, it's James. Can you pull up the terrain maps for the cliff bellow the museum? Thanks. I'll put you on speaker."

Cakes voice rang out of the cell. "What exactly is it you looking for, sweet cheeks?"

"Is there by any chance a cave in the cliff?"

"Huh, would you look at that. There's a cave all right, a pretty big one in fact."

Dmitri studied the cliff's face. "I don't see any caves, J."

"That's because the entrance is under water. Look there, down by the waves." James explained. "Can you get us in closer, Mac?"

As the boat pulled up beside the rocks, the crew looked down into the dark waves. "What can you tell us about the cave, Cake?" Siena inquired.

"Not much I'm afraid, my darlings. These charts are pretty old. As far as I can tell the cave leads into a few tunnels inside the cliff."

"Well let's check it out." James pulled off his shirt.

"Hold on now, let's think this through. We don't know what's down there. There might not even be an air pocket." Siena tried once again to reason with James.

"We'll never know if we don't check it out. Come on."

"Sorry mate, I should stay with the boat." Mac said.

"And I should stay with Mac. You know, keep an eye on him." Dmitri said. "Never know what crazy stuff this guy will do next." Siena rolled her eyes at her brother, but also declined.

"I agree with Siena." Natalie said. "We have no idea what's down there."

The light had reappeared in James' eyes. "Well that's alright Miss West. God forbid you should get your hands dirty." James teased. "You just stay here."

Natalie narrowed her eyes at him. "Like hell I will." The two of them stripped down to their underwear.

"On second thought," Dmitri stood up. "Maybe I will come."

"Sit down, Dmitri." His sister commanded. "Mom would kill me if I let her golden boy drown."

Mac handed James a flashlight. James climbed to the side of the boat and offered Natalie a hand up. "You ready, Miss West?"

"Are you?" Natalie challenged. She moved past his outstretched hand and dove into the depths. James followed with a lopsided grin.

It was dark beneath the surface. Natalie swam forward, looking for the cave wall. She couldn't see James anywhere. As she swam deeper into the darkness, panic boiled up inside her. She needed air. Where was James? Was she even swimming the right way? Finally Natalie felt the slimy cave wall against her fingers. She calmed down a little. She could edge her way along side of it. But her lungs where burning. She needed air. Now.

Above her Natalie saw a small air pocket by the roof of the tunnel. She kicked upwards, eager to find oxygen. Natalie broke the surface and inhaled deeply.

But just then a wave rushed into the tunnel. It swept her forward with it and slammed her into rock. Natalie's body scrapped along the stone roof and she let out a cry. She tried to go back under but the waves dragged her along the stone roof. Natalie tried again and again to break free but the waves were relentless. She could feel her muscles going limp. Black terror filled her mind. This was going to kill her. This was how she would die. Again she was thrown against the stone, and she screamed, chocking on seawater.

Then something took hold of her foot and dragged her under, away from the waves. It was still too dark, Natalie couldn't see anything but black. She thrashed out against the mysterious force that was pulling her. Just as the fight was leaving her body, they broke the surface. Natalie desperately gulped in oxygen. And then she was being lifted out of the water and was deposited onto cold stone.

Natalie coughed up what felt like a gallon of seawater. A light turned on and sense came back to Natalie. She could see James collapsed beside her, panting. After they had both taken in sufficient oxygen, he smiled.

"You kick pretty damn hard, for a girl." He teased. "You alright?" She nodded.

"Thank you."

He waved her off. "Don't mention it." James shinned the flashlight in her face. "Esh, you pretty banged up. You sure your alright?" Natalie could feel the scratches all over her body and she hoped they didn't look as bad as they felt.

"I'll survive." They both rose to their feet and James shone the flashlight around the cavern.

The cave's ceiling rose 20 feet high. The sea had eroded away at the rock for hundreds of years, leaving behind a secret space, hidden beneath the waves. In the darkness, they could make out various tunnels that led off this way and that.

James pointed to high up near cave's ceiling. From the light of the flash light Natalie could make out the smooth surface of the museums basement wall. The architects had built into the cliff.

She glanced back at James who was grinning.

He laughed. "Jackpot."

_**And it's all starting to come to together! I'll see you on Wensday for chapter 9, but until then, have a great week guys. -Niephora **_


	9. Charmed

_**Good Morning All! Ugh so we are more than half way through now and I'm kind of in a panic right now because while I was posting this story I was supposed to be working on my next story, which is related to this one. Of course life and my lazy tendencies are getting in the way. The next story is related to this one but it's about the original characters, not this second generation. You'll see what I mean in chapter 13. My plan was to write it while posting this story and then hopefully I would be able to immediately start posting the next story, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen. So I'm going to try and kick my lazy butt back into the writing process, but if you guys could bug me about it, telling me to get back to work every now and then, it might help. So for now, enjoy this chapter and please review. **_

Despite all odds, the plan was coming together. But there were only three days left and they still needed the security codes to gain access to the roof to make their escape.

That morning the crew assembled in the apartment once again. Natalie, James and Dmitri waited upstairs for Mac and Siena to arrive with breakfast.

Natalie noticed the bags under James' eyes. The stress to succeed with this heist seemed to weigh more heavily on him than then rest. Natalie wondered if he had gotten any sleep last night. She was about to ask him when Siena walked in, trailed by Mac.

"We've got donuts!" She sang happily. This seemed to wake Dmitri from his slumber. The group devoured breakfast as Cake filled them in.

"Well good morning, darlings. I've been doing some hacking into the museum's security files and I've found some things. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find the security code for the lock on the stairwell door. We're going to need it if you have any plans of getting out of there after you rob the joint."

"So where are we supposed to find this code if it's not in the computer." Dmitri spoke with his mouth full.

"Okay. 1. Swallow before you speak. 2. Change you shirt. Stains don't look good on anyone. No even you, handsome. And 3. The code is probably written down in the museums hardcopy security file, which is in the Curator's office."

"How did you figure that out?" Siena inquired.

"Hacked into the security camera feeds." Cake said nonchalantly, as if it wasn't extremely illegal. "Anyways the point is we need access to that office. So, ladies and gentlemen, meet Miss Tiffany Crawford." A picture of a pretty young blond popped up on the laptop screen. "She is a Princeton graduate and was born and raised in Boston. She was an only child but had a pet dog named Buddy. Tiffany enjoys yoga, Tolstoy, German Sheppards and long walks on the beach."

"Okay, but who is she?" James asked the question the entire crew was thinking.

"Our friend Miss Crawford here is the Curators assistant. Which means she has access to the curator's office." Cake smile said she was pretty proud of herself. "And judging from her Facebook relationship status, Tiffany is a prime target for one of you charming young gentlemen."

Dmitri spoke up first. "Well, I think we all know which one of us is the Prince Charming."

James spoke next. "No objections here." Mac nodded in agreement. "So I guess the job is all yours, Dmitri."

After a few hours of preparation they were ready. James, Siena and Natalie stayed back at the apartment and would watch the events on the screen. Mac went with Dmitri to the museum incase he needed a wingman, or just a get away driver.

The plan was simple. Dmitri would catch Tiffany as she walked through the museum to her office. He would charm the pants off her (not literally), and then somehow convince her to let him into her boss's office.

Dressed up in his suit, Dmitri looked a good five years older than his 16 years.

Cake chattered through the comms., giving Dmitri a few last minute pointers.

"Don't worry. I've got this. Tiffany Crawford won't know what hit her."

"Alright hotshot, here she comes." Siena warned.

Tiffany Crawford was a petite blond woman. She didn't look more than 22. Tiffany wobbled her way across the museum floor on some six-inch heels. In a way, Natalie felt bad for her. Tiffany was about to be conned, and would probably lose her job if they succeeded. But then again, if she was careless enough to let a thief into her boss's office, she would deserve it.

Dmitri was about to offer up one of his most charming pickup lines, when suddenly something caught her eye and Tiffany changed her course. She strode across the room and stopped beside a young man admiring a painting.

"Like it?" She inquired. "It's a Frida Kahlo." If Mac was surprised by her sudden appearance, he didn't show it.

Mac turned to look at Tiffany. "Yes, it's quite stunning." He answered smoothly. It was clear he wasn't talking about the painting. Tiffany blushed.

On the opposite side of the room, Dmitri was baffled. "What just happened?"

James laughed. "I think your wing man just stole your girl, Dmitri."

Tiffany continued the conversation, completely unaware of the chatter in Mac's ear. "Oh, your English." She was delighted with his adorable accent.

Mac offered up a winning smile. "And your American. From Boston, I believe."

"Well, yeah. How did you know?" Tiffany's smile grew wider.

"Lucky guess."

Natalie noticed Siena go tense beside her. But everyone else's attention was on Mac's newly discovered 'skills'.

"I'm Tiffany Crawford. I actually work here." She offered him her hand. Instead of a handshake he lifted her small hand to his lips and kissed it.

"Brian Jenkins. It's very nice to meet you, Tiffany." Mac spoke her name as if it were the sweetest song.

Siena then began savagely tearing a piece of paper into tiny shreds. Still, no one but Natalie took notice.

"Seriously, how is he doing this? He's got her hook, line and sinker." Dmitri was baffled.

"Shhh." Cake hushed him.

"Are you familiar with Frida Kahlo's work?"

"No." Mac admitted. "But I would very much like to become better acquainted with it."

Tiffany smiled again. "Well then, your in luck, I happen to know quite a bit about her work. She actually had a very interesting life, Frida Kahlo." Tiffany launched into the story behind the painting and the painter herself. Mac gave her his full attention. When Tiffany had finished her babbling, Mac spoke.

"She sounds fascinating. I would love to see more of her works. Do you by chance have any others here?"

Tiffany bit her lip. She was trying to decide whether or not to tell him about the painting hanging in her boss's office. "Well, we don't have anymore in the public galleries, but.."

Mac urged her to continue with a charming smile. "Yes?"

Natalie had no idea how Mac managed to find and steal the code while Tiffany was in the room. But she was impressed. And by the looks on the rest of the crew's faces, Mac's flirting abilities came as a surprise to everyone.

Only twenty minutes after entering the building, Mac strolled out onto the street. Tiffany had been called away by her boss, so Mac made a quick get away. Tiffany had given Brian her phone number, but she would never get his call. And in a week or so, she would have forgotten the stranger's name. The slick and charming Brian Jenkins vanished the minute Mac stepped out onto the street.

It amazed Natalie how easily the crew was able to create and discard identities. A skill, she guessed, they had all developed in their life long careers as thieves. They could be anyone in the world, and at the same time, no one at all.

I'll post again on Friday. And I feel like I say this every chapter, but Moogie you are literally THE best. Also, I definitely don't say this enough, thanks so much for reading guys, your all awesome! -Niephora


	10. Girls' Night Out

_**Hello over there! So this chapter isn't really for plot development, its just a fun one. As always, I hope you enjoy and leave me a review if you can. **_

Natalie climbed the creaky old staircase of the Italian house for the millionth time. They had camping out in the abandoned house for less than a week, but it felt like Natalie had lived there all her life. She glanced down the dark hall to her left that led to the other bedrooms. Her own room was right in front of the stairs so she never had any reason to venture down the long hallway.

James had asked her to do some maintenance work on the com. units. It wasn't the most thrilling task, but it had to be done so Natalie had done so without complaint. With the fixed com. units piled in her arms she made her way to James' door. Natalie had thought it was sort of strange that James had chosen the bedroom at the very end of the dark hall, seemingly as far away from the rest of the crew as possible. But the more time she spent with the crew, the more she felt the underlying tension.

Whilst attempting to balance the large pile of various wires and bits in one arm, Natalie knocked on the door. There was no answer, and no sound of footsteps within the room. Dmitri had said he was in his room when she'd asked, but maybe James had gone out.

She raised her arm to knock again just as the door was flung open quickly. Startled by the unexpected fast movement, Natalie jumped backwards and a few of the com. units tumbled from her arms.

James stood in the doorway and watched Natalie with amusement as she scrambled to catch the falling equipment. He chuckled. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

"You didn't startle me." Natalie said defensively. Having gathered the fallen units and her pride, Natalie stood up. "Here," She thrust the pile towards James, suddenly eager to get rid of the stupid things. "There'll all fixed. Or at least they were." Natalie grumbled. Yet again another unit fell from the pile, but this time James caught it with his cat like reflexes.

He smirked at her, obviously proud of his superior reflexes. "Thanks, just put them on the table in the corner." James moved aside to let her in. Natalie was slightly shocked; it wasn't like the secretive James that she knew to casually invite her into his room. She eyed him suspiciously.

"What's that look for?" He asked innocently.

Natalie brushed passed him. "Nothing." She looked around for the table, but had some trouble finding it. James' room was worse than the meeting room; every wall and surface was covered in plans.

It had become apparent over the last week that James compulsively took on jobs that most thieves would never risk pulling, but that wasn't to say that he didn't obsessively plan every last detail. He was risky, but he wasn't the kind of guy to leave anything to chance.

James closed the door behind them and moved to clear some space on the table for the com. units. After depositing the pile onto the table, Natalie turned to James. She noticed for the first time that his shirt and brow were stained with sweat.

"Are you all right? You look flushed." She inquired. Now would not be the time for the crew's leader to get sick.

"What? Oh, no, I'm fine, I was just working out." He explained, "It helps with the stress." They were all stressed.

Natalie nodded. "Anything else you need me to do?"

"Huh?" James seemed a little distracted. "No, there's nothing right now, thanks." Odd. They only had a few days until the heist and Natalie knew there was still a lot to get done.

"Are you sure? I could go over the gear list again, I'm sure there is still something we haven't got."

"No, it's fine. Take the night off, we'll have another meeting in the morning and assign jobs then." James brushed her off again.

Did he really not trust her with even simple tasks? When she was with the entire crew, Natalie felt at home, like she was part of it all. But when she spoke with just James, it seemed as if she was only some kind of temporary fill-in. In that moment Natalie became very unsure of her place.

She began to nervously bit her lip, but stopped when she noticed James watching. "Okay, well, just tell me if I can do anything." Natalie started towards the door.

"Natalie." James stopped her in her tracks.

_Just give me something to do_, she prayed silently,_ testing the gas tanks, organizing the gear, anything_; She wanted some mundane task to occupy her thoughts. To keep her mind from filling up with doubts about what she had gotten herself into.

"Yes?"

He paused, and seemed to change his words. "Have you seen Siena lately?" He must have noticed the fall in her expression because he continued. "I couldn't find her this afternoon, and I know you two are close so I wondered if you knew where she was?"

Natalie did know, or at least she had a guess. "No, sorry. I haven't." Natalie staged a small mutiny within her thoughts. Fine, if James wouldn't trust her with even the smallest tasks, then she wouldn't trust him with anything.

James stared at her for a long moment and Natalie stared back. He didn't believe her and they both knew it. The real question was whether he would call her out on it.

Admitting defeat, James sighed and broke eye contact. He turned back to his blueprints sprawled across the bed, signaling that their conversation was over. "Alright, thanks. I'll see you later."

Natalie marched her way to the door and closed it with a defiant thud. She hated being dismissed like that, as if James thought he could controlled her. Alone in the dark hall, her aggravation only grew. What gave him the right to brush her off? Why did he get to decide whether she was part of the crew or not?

Natalie tried to sooth her hurt pride before she worked herself up past the point of no return. Her grandfather had always said, Natalie's pride would only get her into trouble, and her quick temper didn't help.

But her thoughts changed as she passed the open door to the meeting room. If James couldn't find Siena, it was because Siena didn't want to be found.

On a hunch, Natalie climbed to the roof. As expected, she wasn't there. James would have looked on the roof. Scanning the surroundings, Natalie noticed a support beam connected the building with its neighbor. She peaked over the edge of the roof. It was a long way down, and the old beam was more than a little sketchy.

Natalie took a deep breath. The things she did for these people. Ridiculous.

Siena whipped around when Natalie rounded the corner of the slanted roof, but seemed to relax when she noticed it was only her. "Hey." She greeted, not at all concerned that Natalie had found her hiding spot.

Natalie sat next to Siena on the edge as the sun settled low in the sky. Their feet dangled three stories above the ground and that familiar edgy feeling swept over Natalie's skin. "You really like heights don't you?"

Siena smiled a true thieves smile. "It's the best vantage point for surveillance." It was when she was smiling like that that she looked so much like her brother. Natalie recalled James first description of the twins. 'Thieves since the day they were born.'

Another thought occurred to Natalie then. "Mac doesn't like height's, does he?" Siena didn't say anything, which was a answer all on it's own.

Natalie tries a different approach. "So, the Bagshaw's are part of the family, right?"

Siena nods, always happy to answer Natalie's questions. Siena seemed to want Nat to be a part of the family too. "Yeah, years ago, one of the Bagshaw's did one of my mother's uncles a favor, and after that the Bagshaw's were in."

"Just like that? Must have been a pretty big favor."

"Actually, I'm not sure what it even was. I should ask Uncle Bobby sometime."

"Right, so the Bagshaw's aren't biological family then? Mac's not your cousin or anything?" Natalie teased.

Siena wrinkled her nose at the thought and laughed. "Gross! No, we aren't related."

Natalie joined in with Siena's laughter. "Okay, just checking."

"Ugh, no. We're family, but not like that. I've known Mac since I was a baby.

We all went on our first real heist together. Did you know that? Me, Dmitri, Mac and James. We stole a painting from a small gallery in Munich." She smiled at the memory. "But we didn't think through the transport, though. By the time we got home and unrolled the painting it was completely destroyed and Dmitri started to cry. But then Aunt Kat showed us the signature at the bottom and told us it was a fake, so there was no harm done. Uncle Angus was so proud of us though. He took the painting and hung it on the fridge so that everyone could see it. We were eight."

Natalie smiled too, but couldn't help but be a little bitter. They had all grown up together and they would know each other for the rest of their lives. Natalie had no siblings or cousins, and no childhood friends. She would never be a part of something like Siena was.

Siena seemed to catch the Natalie's expression. "It's not always rainbows and sunshine, though. I don't have enough fingers to count all the times we've messed up an had to haul ass out of there before Interpol showed up." Siena shuddered at an old memory. "But it will be better now that you and Cake are here. I won't be the only girl anymore and you'll be the one that has to wear the dress and those high heel death traps."

"You'll have to wear a dress for this job, though."

Siena groaned. "Don't remind me."

"Oh and don't forget about the makeup." Natalie teased.

"Ugh, this nightmare is just getting worse and worse." She covered her face with her hands. "How are they supposed to take me seriously when I'm dressed up like a Barbie?" It was Siena's constant challenge to be 'one of the boys'. No wonder Siena was a tomboy, Natalie thought, anytime that she put on a dress or anything remotely feminine she would have been teased to death by her brother and James.

"I've got an idea, how about we have a girls night out? No dresses or heels required." Natalie suggested. They both needed to shake off some of the pressure that was weighing down on them.

"Girl's night out?" Siena seemed confused. It occurred to Natalie then that this was probably as completely foreign concept to Siena.

"Yeah, you know, just us girls. No boys allowed."

Siena seemed to warm to the idea. "Okay, sure, let's do it."

"Alright, where should we go? I think there's a movie theater not too far from here. How about a rom-com?"

The famous Antokov grin appeared on Siena's full lips. "I've got a better idea."

"Okay darlings, I have the blueprints." Cake's voice came through the feed. Cake had been enthralled with the idea of a girl's night, even if she couldn't actually be there. She had suggested clubbing, and offered to print out some fake ID's, but was disappointed when Siena and Natalie decided to rob an jewelry store instead. "It looks like they've got a laser system, infrared camera's and the standard alarm systems. Not too late to go clubbing."

Natalie rolled her eyes and the tiny computer geek, as she crawled through the vents. "Actually it sort of is, Cake."

"Ready?" Siena called from in front.

"Ready." Natalie confirmed. Siena dropped out first into the dark hall of the store. Natalie followed, with a much less graceful landing then Siena.

"First sensor is three meters ahead of you to the right." Cake warned. Like the skilled pro that she was, Siena stalked up to the sensor silently. Reaching into her bag she pulled out a can of hairspray and looked back mischievously at Natalie.

"Hairspray: Girl's best friend." She proceeded to coat the sensor with a thick layer of hairspray, rendering it useless. Siena handed Natalie another can and they moved slowly down the hall and into the main store, spraying every infrared sensors and disabling the cameras and alarms. The perfect tag team. They reached the cases and inspected their contents, careful not the set off the alarm system that was wired through the glass display case.

"What do you think we should take?" Natalie asked.

"How about this one?" Siena pointed to a row of pearls. Neither of them were very interested in the jewelry, they were there for the rush of it all. They would only take one or two things, nothing that would ruin the owners of the store. It wasn't as if the owners were innocent though. Selling blood diamonds was not the trade of honest men.

The girls browsed the selection of glittering jewels. "Ooh, that one's gorgeous." Cake was enjoying this almost more than they were.

"Which one?" Asked Siena.

"The one with the diamonds, on the right. Isn't it gooorgeous?"

Siena and Natalie nodded at each other. Siena hooked her fingers under the table and skill fully disabled the cases alarms. Natalie held the case open as Siena lifted the necklace from its place.

The necklace was a shower of glittering raindrop shaped diamonds. At the center was a diamond the size of Natalie's eye. The necklace was by far the most extravagant, and it suited Cake perfectly.

"This one's all your, Cake." Siena smiled as she placed it in her bag.

They could hear Cake's gleeful giggling through the feed.

"Now you two have to choose one." Cake urged.

"Diamonds aren't really my thing." Siena protested.

"Don't be silly, darling." Cake giggled. "You're a thief, of course diamonds are your thing." And if there is one thing to be said of Siena, it is that she was a thief through and through.

The next morning the owners would discover their misfortune. They would never know how two teenage girls had gotten in and out without so much as a footprint left behind. A diamond, an emerald and a sapphire necklace, were all missing from their fortified cases. Some girls have four-dollar friendship bracelets from Claire's, and others have stolen necklaces worth thousands of dollars.

_**Don't forget to review. It always makes my day. And if your not familiar with Claire's, because I know I have readers from many different countries, it's a cheap jewellery and accessories store for little girls. I'm not sure if its an American company or if its just here in Canada. I'll see you all (well, not literally) on Monday. Have a great weekend! -Niephora**_


	11. Giant Holes

**Hello, my minions! I jest. Yesterday We are Thieves passed 500 views. That's insane! Needless to say I was really excited (I was squeaking. I don't squeak often.) Thank you all so much for reading and thank you Moogie and The Inked Pen for leaving reviews on the last chapter. I apologize this is a short one and sort of a filler. I promise more action in Chapter 12. Like a lot more action ;) (Not _that_ kind of action. Geez get your heads out of the gutter) Again I jest. **

It was two days before the heist and the crew was sorting out the last details of the plan, including the formal wear. The gala was black tie, which meant the crew had to be decked out to blend in. Cake had taken the liberty of arranging all the suits and dresses.

"Dresses are here. Get excited!" Natalie said sarcastically as she threw a garment bag at Siena. The two had been roommates for the past week and not a day went by where Siena didn't complain about having to wear a dress for the gala. As a born and raised thief, dresses and heels were most defiantly not Siena's thing.

"Ugh." Siena groaned. "You know I thought that now there was another girl in the crew I would have to wear these ridiculous things anymore."

"Aw, so that's why you were so happy I sighed up."

"Well, that and it's kind of nice having someone around that doesn't ooze testosterone." Being the only girl in the crew had forced Siena to become more of a boy over the years. Having another girl in the crew meant that Siena didn't have to work so hard not to be the odd one out.

The two girls zipped open the bags and studied their contents. Natalie was used to black tie events and heels. It was just part of being a West. She had attended dozens of benefit galas, company dinners and charity tea parties. Every time Natalie was expected to present herself as the picture perfect daughter.

Siena lifted the dress from the bag as if it were a dead animal carcass. "How is this a dress? There's barely any fabric."

"Just try it on." Encouraged Natalie. Reluctantly Siena retreated into the bathroom.

The heist was tomorrow, which left no time to find replacements if the dresses didn't fit. Natalie wasn't even sure how Cake knew measurements. She wasn't sure about how Cake knew a lot of things. And she had learned it was generally better not to ask.

A knock sounded and James voice rang through the door. "Are you descent?"

"Yeah, come in."

James entered dressed in his tuxedo. Some how Cake had gotten James' exact measurements because it looked like it was tailored to him exactly. Natalie had to admit, he looked like something out of a Bond movie.

"Well, don't you look dashing." She teased. James just rolled his eyes at her but blushed slightly.

"Does the dress fit?"

"I haven't tried it on yet. Siena is using the bathroom."

At that moment Siena emerged.

"Um, Nat, I think there's a rip in mine." Siena turned around to display the cutout back of the dress. "Look there's a huge hole in it."

Natalie couldn't help but laugh at Siena's confused expression.

Cake had chosen a full-length black dress for Siena. It was made of a soft satin material that draped to the floor. Of course Siena's concern was with the cut out that displayed a vast expanse of the skin on her back. Siena would have looked stunning, had it not been for the deep scowl lining her brow.

"How am I supposed to pull off a heist in this? There is a giant hole in the back. A hole!" Siena moaned as she tugged at the fabric.

"I think you look very pretty Siena. Like a pretty little princess." James laughed. He was still laughing when he dodged a flying high heel and ducked out of the room.

"Ignore him. Besides you only have to wear it for an hour, maybe less, and then you can burn it." Natalie reassured her. She seemed to cheer up at the idea of reducing the dress to ashes.

Natalie left Siena grumbling at her reflection in the mirror and headed in the bathroom. Her dress was a light cream color made of layered sheer fabric. It was slightly more conservative than Siena's gown and had no 'giant holes'. It moved easily and if required, Natalie could run in it.

She joined Siena in front of the dirty mirror in the corner of their small room.

"Only one hour." Natalie reminded Siena gently.

"One hour of hell." Groaned Siena.

In his usual fashion, Dmitri barged into the room without so much as a knock. Mac trailed in behind him.

"You are free to oh and aw, ladies." Dmitri modeled his new tux with the kind of obnoxious pride that can only be afforded to teenage boys.

Perfectly in time, the girls rolled their eyes.

"Wow, showing off a lot of skin little sister. Mom would be so proud." Siena threw the second six-inch heel at her brother's head. "I was born three minutes before you, remember idiot?"

"And I'm four inches taller than you. Which makes you the _little_ sister." Dmitri said smugly. All out of heels to throw, Siena just glared.

"Glare all you want, but I'm not leaving until some one tells me how handsome I look."

"Your gorgeous, Dmitri. Now stop provoking them before you get shot." James had silently appeared in the doorway. "Okay, that's enough dress up. Everyone get changed and meet in the main room in five minutes. We've got work to do."

The boys filed out of the room, but Mac paused and looked back at Siena. "Nice, um, you know, nice dress." He turned and disappeared into the hall.

Siena refused to acknowledge Natalie's raised eyebrow and turned back to the mirror with a strong blush on her cheeks. She tried to fight a smile as she said. "Well, I guess, it's not _that_ bad."

**Once again thanks for reading. It's really interesting to see on the charts where all of you are from. As I mentioned before I'm Canadian. It looks like a good majority of you are from the US. (Sup, neighbours?) Moogie that's so cool you're from New Zealand. We're pretty much on opposite sides of the world. Leave me a review and if you want tell me where your from that'd be cool. I would love to put some names to these numbers on the charts. I'll see you guys on Wednesday! **


	12. Curiosity Killed the Cat

**Good Morning! Thanks again to to The Inked Pen and Moogie for the reviews. I love hearing what you guys think. Haha sorry about the spelling/ grammar mistakes Moogie. I've never been good at that (I actually have a learning disability that impedes my spelling) so I usually just rely on Spell Check. I hope this one doesn't have quite so many mistakes. So this one is an interesting chapter and I hope it makes up for the last few, which were more for fun than actual plot development. Soooo read, enjoy, review!**

James had given Natalie a list of various required items to pick but that afternoon. The weather was oppressively hot as Natalie twisted through the narrow streets on her way back to the flat. She was crossing a market place when something inside her told her to turn around. At first she ignored the feeling, but it persisted. Turning her head, Natalie spotted a young man looking her at. He was average height, with a stocky build. About 20 years old, maybe younger. Even as she caught him starring, he didn't look away. Something about him looked familiar. Where did she know him from?

Natalie turned to walk in the opposite direction, hoping to slip away into the crowd. But then she spotted a woman starring at her from behind a fruit cart. The woman's face was distinctive, with a sharp jaw line, which is why Natalie recognized her from the picture of Blacker's crew immediately.

Her heartbeat began to pick up pace. It was no coincidence that they were here. If his crew was around, then Blacker couldn't be far off. Natalie knew that they knew she had seen them starring, but she decided to play dumb, hoping they would believe she didn't recognize them. She continued strolling down the stalls, and out of the corner of her eyes was searching for the nearest exit. Natalie remembered the cell James had given her the first day. Cake's number was set on speed dial. She casually dialed the number and prayed silently that Cake would pick up. After two excruciatingly long rings, Cake's voice came over the phone.

"Darling I would love to chat but I've got a lot of work to do, -"

"Cake, listen. Blacker's crew is surrounding me. They're getting closer."

"Where are you?" Her tone was suddenly serious.

"Gozo Market."

"Alright I see you." Cake pulled up the camera feeds of nearby shops on her screen. "You've got friends on your left and 10 meters behind you. There is an alley to your right coming up. See it?" Natalie nodded. "Go now!"

Natalie bolted down the alley, leaving the crowded streets, and Blacker's crew behind her. There was no doubt in her mind that they would follow. Natalie didn't know what they wanted from her, but she wasn't going to stick around to find out.

Natalie sprinted down the alley until she came to a joining street sprawling with cafés and vendors. She slowed to a walk and blended into the crowd. If she stayed in a populated area maybe they wouldn't touch her. After all, these were wanted thieves so the last thing they wanted was to draw attention to themselves. Natalie's false sense of security was shattered as she spotted Blacker's right hand man, Daniel Parker, scanning the crowd only 20 feet ahead of her.

Natalie ducked into a shop to avoid his gaze. She didn't check to see if he had seen her. If she stayed there too long he would find her eventually, and may have already. She frantically looked around for another exit but the only other way to leave the shop was the stairs leading up to the apartments above. Natalie was out of options. She took the stairs three at a time just as the strong-jawed women entered the shop, flanked by Parker.

Upstairs, Natalie found herself in hall of locked doors. Behind her footsteps echoed on the steps. Crap. An open window at the end of the hall led out to a fire escape, her only option. She ditched the bag of ropes James had asked her to pick up by the window and descended the rattling metal steps. The fire escape stopped five feet above the ground and Natalie was forced to jump. She hit the ground running and bolted down another narrow street. Startled bystanders jumped out of the way, cursing at her back.

Natalie ran down street after street and had long since lost all sense of direction. She felt the strain of running slow her down. She needed to find her way back to the flat, but she had no idea where she was. A few minutes passed before Natalie recognized a familiar church at the end of on of the streets. Relieved, she made her way towards it. If she could make it to the church she could find her way home again.

A figure moved into her path, stopping her abruptly. Blacker's tall frame loomed over her, blocking her escape with a cool confidence. Natalie didn't have to look behind her to know that she was completely surrounded.

She was preparing to go down kicking and screaming, but Blacker simply gestured for her to enter the small restaurant beside him, from which he had emerged. It was as if he had been expecting her the entire time and was now playing the role of the perfect gentleman.

There was no escape and no hope of rescue. She had stupidly forgotten the phone in the bag of ropes. Hopefully Cake was still watching over her through the cameras.

Natalie cautiously walked into the restaurant. It seemed like a normal place. It was half empty but a few other customers filled the tables and chatted to one another quietly.

Blacker pulled out a chair for Natalie at a table near the window, still playing the role of the gentleman perfectly. But she wouldn't let him get too much satisfaction from it all. Natalie walked to the other side of the table and pulled out her own chair and sat down. Blacker's eyes lit up with amusement at Natalie's small act of defiance. He sat down across from her and rested his elbows on the table.

"I would introduce myself, but you already know who I am." Blacker's Australian accent was faint. Natalie guessed that he probably hadn't lived there is years. "And I know who you are. Coffee?"

Not waiting for her response Blacker motioned to a waiter for two coffees.

He turned again to face her and smiled. "Natalie West. Sixteen years old. Born in New York City, but you spent most of your childhood in the French countryside. You attend Abercorn Academy in London and are at the top of your class. Well, most of your classes. You broke your left arm when you were six and your favorite color is purple. You have a bright future ahead of you. You'll most likely inherit a large share of your father's company within the next 15 years or so. I know everything there is to know about you Natalie, and yet I cannot for the life of me figure out why you would want to become a common thief."

"It's blue." Blacker's speech was an attempt to scare her. He had succeeded but she wouldn't let him see it. "My favorite color is sapphire blue. It hasn't been purple since I was ten."

Blacker looked at the sapphire necklace hanging around Natalie's neck. She wondered if he knew about her girls' night out a few nights before.

"I'll make note of that." He smirked but then pressed the question again. "But you never answered my question."

"Then ask it again."

Blacker paused for a moment to study the defiant girl sitting before him. "Alright, why, with a future as bright as yours, did you decide to become a criminal mastermind?"

"That's not your question."

"No?" He raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

"You don't care why I decided to join James' crew, you want to know why James recruited me. What makes me a valuable part of his crew and a threat to yours? "

Blacker just smiled and said. "You're a very blunt girl. No bullshit. I like it. So tell me then, why is it that Bishop recruited you, over anyone else in the world?"

The memory of that night in the museum resurfaced in her mind. It was less then two weeks ago but it felt like another lifetime. Now that Natalie honestly thought about it, she wasn't sure why James had followed her to London. Yes, she was able to break into the Louvre by herself, but that didn't exactly prove her to be a valuable crewmember. She had no experience. No training. And none of the thieving instincts the others seemed to have.

Natalie answered the question honestly. "I don't know."

A flash of annoyance crossed Blacker's face but was quickly replaced with a coy smile. "Bishop isn't thick. He wouldn't have someone in his crew unless they were very good at what they do. Which means you're of some value to him. He either loves you," Blacker's eyes traced the line of her face. "which I wouldn't blame him for. Or you're a lot more dangerous then you look."

The pair starred across the table at each other in silence. Natalie knew neither of those things was true, but Blacker certainly believed so. Either way, taking Natalie out of the picture would damage James' crew's chances of ever getting that statue.

Reading her racing thoughts, Blacker broke the silence. "I'm not going to kill you. That would be a waste. I'm just… curious." Blacker's eyes were a bright hazel green that seemed to capture both the light and Natalie's attention. On the surface he looked like any other man, but something about his eyes hinted otherwise. There was a kind of insanity in them that set Natalie on edge. Like prey caught by a tiger's graceful beauty, his eyes drew her towards him even though her mind was screaming at her to run like hell.

For a long moment, an answer escaped her as she drowned in a sea of hazel- green. When she finally spoke, she didn't know why she repeated the saying that had been circling her thoughts for the past two weeks.

"Curiosity killed the cat." Realizing her mistake, Natalie mentally kicked herself. If Blacker took it as a serious threat, and it certainly sounded like one, she was done for. But to her surprise, a sort of admiration appeared in his expression and he gave a soft laugh.

"You don't scare easily, do you?" He took another sip of coffee, keeping his eyes locked on hers, and then continued. "Maybe I should be careful. After all, you're the one with the advantage."

"And what advantage is it that I have over you?" She was honestly curious.

"I can't kill you, but you could kill me." His smile was mischievous. "I don't exist. That is there is no record of me. If I disappeared, no one would look for me. There would be no police investigation and you would get off scot free." His voice got lower and he starred intently at his fingers on his coffee cup, like he expected them to disappear. "No one's going to miss someone who doesn't exist."

A rule of war: you never show an enemy your weakness. So why had someone as intelligent as Blacker left his wide open for her to see? Was it a trick?

He was alone. He had no family like James' to avenge him if he died. Blacker was floating alone in empty space. Natalie felt the urge to touch his hand and to pull him from that emptiness. Looking down, she realized how close their hands actually were, and she moved hers to her lap. Natalie's movement broke his trace and the smile returned to Blacker's lips.

"But you're safe. You've got your family and your last name to protect you. Only a fool would harm with a West. And, of course your crew would certainly have a problem with your death."

Natalie laughed bitterly. "What crew?" She muttered. Now it was her turn to give away too much.

Blacker picked up on her mood. "What? You doubt they would avenge one of their own?" He paused and studied her for a moment. "Or is it that you're not one of them. Not really."

Natalie shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. She was becoming aware of how stuffy the café was.

When Blacker spoke again his tone and expression was softer. "You might doubt it, but I can see it, you're a thief at heart. And you're one of them."

Natalie was eager to change the subject. This was just too personal. "And that makes me a threat to you."

The smirk returned to his face. "Well, that depends on how good of a thief you really are. But until I know that, yes, you're something of a danger to me."

"Then I guess you'll just have to wait and see." Natalie tried to mirror his coy tone.

Blacker raised his coffee cup towards her in a toast. "I have a feeling you and I are going to be the best of opponents."

In that moment, James came rushing in through the doors, out of breath, followed by Mac. A look of relief flooded his face as he spotted Natalie unharmed. Cake must have called them. Natalie made a mental note to thank the small girl when she got out of there.

"Ah, come to join us Bishop? We were just having a friendly chat." Blacker spoke to James, but his eyes never left Natalie's face.

James towered over Blacker, obviously struggling to contain his anger. His burst of fury was a break from his usual stony expression. "Kidnapping competitors is out of line, Blacker."

"I don't remember there being a rule book." Blacker was mocking him.

"It's not fair play and you know it."

"Oh calm down, golden boy, your girl's safe and sound. No harm done. There is no need to go on about honor and fair play."

The two men starred at each other intensely, neither one willing to yield. But then Blacker's crew began to converge and it was time to go.

James still refused to sacrifice his pride by backing down so Natalie rose and took his arm, pulling him from the room.

But before they could escape, Blacker caught her arm. "It was good to chat, Natalie. I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." His words were more of a threat than a promise. Blacker leaned in and whispered in her ear "I'm too curious to stay away for long." He intimately kissed her cheek before releasing her. The touch caught Natalie off guard and she bolted from the café to hide to blushing cheeks.

James had the good sense to follow her out. But his anger hadn't disappeared and Natalie had to jog to match his furious pace.

"Did he hurt you? Or threaten you?" James demanded.

"No, he just wanted to scare me a bit. He just talked, that's all."

"What did you tell him? What did he ask?"

Natalie became suddenly defensive. "I didn't _tell_ him anything!"

Although James question did cause her to nervously go over the conversation in her mind. But reviewing it again, Natalie was positive she hadn't given anything away.

"Are you absolutely sure? He can be persuasive."

Natalie resented his tone. "James, I didn't tell him anything! I would never be so stupid as to endanger the job like that."

He gave no reply, only turned to Mac and said. "He may have gone after the others." James took a set of keys from his pocket. "Take the car. Find Siena and Dmitri. They should be down at the docks." Mac was off in the next instant, running in the opposite direction.

So much was going on, but only one thing came to Natalie's mind. "Since when exactly did we have access to a car?" She thought of all the times she could have used a car to carry the equipment rather than lugging it around the city on foot. Why had she not known about the car? What else didn't she know about?

James just grumbled. "It's a family car. It was necessary for you to know about it."

Natalie froze. "And what else is there that isn't necessary for me to know? Is there a secret plane as well? Or maybe another crew that might decide to kidnap me?" She snapped sarcastically.

"Don't be stupid, Nat."

"Don't be stupid? I don't see how I can avoid 'being stupid' if I can't make informed decisions." It was her turn to be angry now.

James turned on her. "Is there a problem here?"

"Yes, there is, James. You don't trust me!"

"You're right! I don't trust you! What reason do I have to?"

"What reason do you have _not_ to?" Natalie demanded.

Their voices were getting louder and people on the street were starting to stare. James grabbed hold of her elbow and pulled her into an empty side street.

"Look, you're just not, you're-"

"I'm not what, James? I'm not part of the crew?"

James had reached his limit and he snapped. "No! You're not part of the crew, Natalie! Not even close."

Her shock and pain must have registered on her face because James looked slightly regretful. Natalie had always had this thought in the back of her mind. But James had just flat out admitted that she was never going to be one of them. She was just a placeholder. Natalie was temporary.

James was too proud to take back his words. "Well, it's the truth. We needed more people for the job, and-and you were willing."

When she didn't reply, he became defensive. "You knew it when you signed up. I never said otherwise."

It was true. Natalie had always known she was just there as an extra pair of hands. But over the last two weeks, she had felt as though she was part of something. Like she had found her place. And now James was cruelly reminding her that she would never be one of the crew. One of the family.

Cake had a skill, and they needed her. But not Natalie.

When Natalie spoke, she hated how weak her voice sounded. "So after this job, that's it. You just disappear and I go back to school, like it never happened?" She couldn't look at him or meet his eyes. Natalie just starred past him.

"Yeah, I guess-" His words trailed off.

Natalie could feel her eyes puff up. Soon the tears would come. _Stupid, girl! _She cursed herself silently. _Why are you crying? You knew it was like this._ It had been foolish of her to believe otherwise.

Natalie gathered what was left of her pride and turned to face James. "Okay, we do this job and then we go our separate ways."

"Okay." He agreed firmly. Without another word, the pair began to walk to meet the others. Night was beginning to fall and they were a long way from the apartment.

**Well, what do you guys think? This whole underlying tension between Natalie and James has come to a head. Don't forget to come back on Friday because Chapter 13 is an important one and I can't wait for you all to read it. Also what did you think of Sam Blacker? Have a great day guys! -Niephora **


	13. The Warmest Memories

**She's back! If only for this chapter. You guys wanted to see Kat again so here she is. It's not a super long chapter but it's important. Thanks again Moogie for being so supportive. I dislocated my thumb yesterday so it's safe to say I wasn't having the best day, but seeing your reviews always makes me feel a lot better. We here it is, please don't hate me: **

They walked along the narrow streets, weaving through the growing dinner crowds. Natalie fell into step beside him and they walked without talking. Then James halted mid stride. She followed his gaze, trying to see what had stopped him in his tracks.

"What is it?"

"Nothing." But his eyes told her it wasn't. "You head back to the apartment, I'll catch up."

Over the past week Natalie had spent with James and his crew, she had learned to read people better than she ever could before. And right then there was something off in James' eyes. He seemed jittery, and not in his usual wild way. He looked nervous.

"James?" Natalie said timidly. She wasn't eager to over step her boundaries again after his last outburst. He must have been reading her eyes as well because when he spoke again his voice was almost apologetic.

"Nat, I-" He paused, and seemed to rethink his words. "Go back to the house. I won't be long." James disappeared into the crowd.

Natalie reluctantly left him behind in the square. She could have followed him, found out what was making him nervous. But she didn't. Instead she gave James what he never seemed willing to give to her; just a bit of trust.

Making sure Natalie didn't follow him; James circled the square once then casually made his way to its center. The square was crowded with tourists going to diner or watching the street performers juggle flaming batons. The world around him was a buzz with life as people moved to a fro.

James sat down on a bench next to a woman with bright blue eyes.

"How am I supposed to embarrass you in front of your friends when you won't even introduce me to them?" Kat teased.

"Hi Mom." He didn't look at her and she didn't look at him. It was safer that no one knew they were related. James sat next to the woman who had given him life, the woman who had taught him everything he knew about being a thief, and to anyone around them they would have looked like perfect strangers. In a lot of ways, James thought, they were. "How did Florence go?"

"Better then expected. Turns out they had more than one Degas in the storage room. Tokyo?"

James sighed. "Blacker and his crew beat us to the punch." In the world of thieves this was the equivalent to telling your parents you had just failed your math test. "But we're going to get there first this time."

Out of the corner of his eye James saw his mother smile. "Sometimes you sound just like you dad. So determined. You've got his sense of pride."

James rolled his eyes. "Really, I thought that came from your side of the family?"

He heard her laugh softly.

"How's Dad?" James asked. It had been a few months since he had seen his parents.

"He's over by the fountain." She answered. James causally looked in the direction of the crowd around the fountain. His father wasn't quite the natural born thief his mother was, so James spotted him in a second. Nick Bennett smiled and nodded towards his son before turning to look elsewhere.

Everyone always said James was like his mother in temperament and like his father in looks, but James liked to think he was a good mix of both his parents. He had his dad's blond hair and build, and his mother's blue eyes.

They weren't a normal family. James didn't live with his parents and saw them only every few months. Sure, it gave him all the freedom he could want, but he missed them.

After a minute, Kat spoke again. "What's her name?" This was what he had been afraid of.

James began his defense. "Mom, I know it was a risk bringing her into this but we needed extra hands, and the rest of the family is busy. And I get what's at stake, but she's good. She broke into the Louvre all by her self. It was a stupid risk, I know, but I had to take it."

Kat was silent for a moment. "I took a risk once, bringing your father into the family. Our side of the family seems to bring home a lot of strays."

Relief washed over him, it wasn't out right approval but it was all that he needed. "Well this is different. I'm not going to marry Natalie, she's just temporary." James joked.

"I didn't think I was going to marry your father when I first met him, either. You never know what-"

"Mom." James groaned, but he couldn't help but smile. Even grown boys miss their mothers sometimes.

"Alright, alright." She laughed. "Did your Aunt tell you about Shang Hi?"

It was back to business and James could tell their visit was drawing to a close. "Yes, but she got a little distracted by Siena's fashion choices. She didn't give us many details."

"When you finish this job, meet us in New York. We'll tell you kids about it then. We're going to need all the people we can get for this one. You should bring your new friend." The clock in the center of the square struck nine. "That's my queue to leave." She rose to her feet.

"Bye Mom." James said, still playing the part of a perfect stranger.

Then Kat broke the façade and kissed him affectionately on the head.

"I'll see you in New York, мальчик." She used his old Russian pet name, and James felt like a small boy again. His childhood memories came back to him all at once. Memories of sitting on his mother's lap, watching the crackling fire, as his parents discussed blue prints. The faded image in his mind of all his aunts and uncles sitting around the kitchen table in the brownstone, eating and laughing. He could vaguely remember an old man standing in the kitchen, stirring a pot of soup.

Kat and Nick slipped away into the crowd, and with them left his warm childhood memories, replaced by the night's cold breeze. And once again, James was left to face an impossible task, and an impossibly big world all on his own.

**Hehe and you guys thought Hale was the father :P I realize it's a bit of a twist but I'll currently writing a sort of spin off fan fiction about the development of Kat and Nick's relationship and how this all came about. (It's going to explain what happened to Kat and Hale as well). So I hope you all don't hate me now. I know lots of people really like Hale. Wow, only three chapters left (eek!) this has gone by quickly. I'll post again on Monday :) See you guys then. -Niephora **


	14. Thunder and Lightening

**Okay so you guys just blew up the review box! (Review box? no sure what you call it) I loved, loved, loved reading them all so keep em coming! Thanks a ton to Moogie , LazySundayGirl, K and The Inked Pen! I use this expression too much, but you guys made my life. And have an awesome holiday Moogie! The story will be waiting for you when you get back. Alright, I'm sad to say that this is the beginning of the end for this story. I'm making slow progress on the next fanfic but until that publishes enjoy the last three chapters of this one. **

The day before the heist, storm clouds gathered above the city. The air grew dark and restless as the winds picked up.

The entire crew was agitated and edgy that day. Tensions ran high throughout the group, and tempers threatened to boil over.

James stood on the balcony, starring out over the city as the storm clouds drew closer. Mac approached silently and leaned against the doorframe. He didn't speak, he just starred at James.

James grew increasingly irritated by Mac's silent presence. When his annoyance had reached its boiling point, James snapped. "What do you want, Mac?"

"You're an idiot." He stated it as if it were a fact.

"Gee, thanks." James said sarcastically.

The previous night James had snapped at Natalie, and told her that she would never really become part of the crew. She was just a temp. News of Natalie and James' fight had come back to the rest of the crew and now everyone was on edge. The crew had dispersed to their separate corners so as to avoid tempers flaring. The last thing they needed the day before a big heist was to start fights.

Siena had grown attached to the new girl and was now livid that James insisted Natalie would be only temporary. Surprisingly Dmitri had backed James and agreed that bringing someone new into the crew was too risky. Siena had argued that Cake was also a new addition. But they all knew that Cake had special skills they needed, which made her worth the risk.

The argument had drawn a large divide between the crew. There had already been enough tension within the group about the Amsterdam incident, now this was adding to it.

Natalie and James had been studiously avoiding each other since their confrontation. Natalie had agreed to continue with the heist, even though it was now clear that she was not part of the crew.

"I would have thought you of all people would be on my side, Mac. You know it's dangerous to expose the family by letting people into the crew."

"I think your forgetting that if Aunt Kat hadn't taken that same risk, you wouldn't be here." Mac kept his voice calm, and it only annoyed James more.

"And look what happened then! My dad almost got them caught by Interpol."

Mac sighed. "James, Natalie isn't part of Interpol."

"That doesn't mean she isn't a risk."

"I don't know why you're being such a bloody idiot, J. You've said it yourself before. We can't pull big heists with a small crew. And here Natalie is, risking all that she has to help us and to be one of us, but you won't risk anything in return. I get it. You want to protect the family and the crew. But you also want us to be one of the best crews out there, right?"

"Of course."

"Well, you're thick if you can't see that we can't be the best with only four people in the crew. We need more people."

"How many times, do I have to say this, Mac, it's too risky-"

Mac was getting angry now. His calm demeanor was breaking and his voice rose in volume. "God damn it, James, what are you so afraid of? Do you honestly think Natalie would betray us?"

"No, I never said she would!"

"Then what are you so afraid of?"

"Just shut up, Mac. Shut up and leave me alone."

"No! I am just as much part of this crew as you are. Why, James? Why are you being so damn stubborn about this? I don't-"

"People get hurt, Mac! You were there in Amsterdam, just like I was. When people join the crew, they get hurt."

Silence fell between the two boys. They starred at each other, neither one daring to move or speak. The air had taken on a new charge.

After a long moment, Mac looked away and said quietly. "We need more people to pull the big jobs. If you don't let Natalie in, you're condemning this crew to mediocrity."

James turned his back on Mac, angrily and starred out over the city. Mac turned to leave, but his parting words stuck in James' mind. "You can't live in fear forever, J."

Natalie stood by the window in the lower floor of the abandoned house. Tensions within the crew had grown intolerable and she wanted desperately to escape it all. She avoided all contact with the others. Natalie wasn't sure if she could stand to see James right now without losing her temper.

So she stood alone, watching as the storm materialized and rain started to pour. Thunder cracked across the sky. The air was humid, despite the growing intensity of the storm's winds. The clouds opened up and heavy sheets of warm rain fell from the heavens. Natalie couldn't stand the suffocating feeling of tension in the house anymore. She need out.

Natalie stepped out from under the shelter of the building, into the deserted street. She had no umbrella or coat; instead she just let the downpour soak through to her skin. Natalie walked quickly away from the front steps of the abandoned house. She tried to focus on finding the café she had passed by several times, but everything seemed different in the dark. The streets she had walked in the daylight were contorted with shadows. She wasn't sure where she was going; she just wanted to get away.

They didn't want her. They didn't even need her. That's why James never trusted her. She was just there to fill in. She would be gone soon. Out of their hair. Thinking of this left a cold feeling within her. Natalie was as alone as she had ever been. She felt lost.

In that moment she realized she _was _lost. Natalie stopped and turned in a circle. She had never seen this street before. There was no sign of anyone else around. The rain had driven the people from the streets, and driven her mad.

Natalie tried to focus on finding her way back but the crushing feeling of loneliness crippled her mentally. Anxiety began to boil inside of her chest and her breathing became ragged. She had only had a few panic attacks in her lifetime. She felt herself slipping into one. Absolute hopelessness paralyzed her mind.

She was so angry. So hurt. So lost.

"We were going after a painting …" Natalie spun around to see James standing in the rain ten feet away. Droplets soaked his hair and slide down his face. Somehow just his presence seemed to calm Natalie's anxiety. But his expression was one that she had never seen before. His eyes were almost desperate, pleading.

"In Amsterdam, we were trying to get our hands on a Rembrandt. I honestly can't remember which one. It was inside the house of a diamond dealer, low security. Just a simple job. We didn't think anything could go wrong." His voice chocked on the words. "Ro wanted to come with us, she wanted to be part of the crew." Natalie recognized the name. Rose Bagshaw was Mac's cousin.

"She was eight, at the time. Just a kid, we were all just kids. I let her come. I promised Uncle Hamish we would look after her. It was only supposed to be a small job." James voice echoed with pain and guilt. Natalie stayed silent, not sure what to say.

"Ro was the distraction. She would knock on the door and occupy the bodyguard while we snatched the painting. But we messed up. They knew we were there. We messed up, Nat." His tears mixed with the rain streaming down his cheeks.

"They grabbed her and dragged her inside. Tried to get her to talk, but she was too stubborn. They broke her knee, like a twig. She was just a kid. How can someone do that to a kid? Her scream- Her scream was the worst sound I've ever heard. I can still hear it."

"She's crippled now. The knee never healed like it should have. Ro can walk and run, a bit, but not very fast. All she wanted was to be part of the crew and, now-now she might never do another heist again. We were carless and stupid. It was our fault, we should have been more careful." The self-loathing in his voice was painful to hear.

"Rose is so smart, Natalie. If you met her you would see. She's only ten now, but she knows all the cons backwards and forwards. She would have been an amazing thief, but we took that from her. We ruined her entire future."

"And now, it's like they want to pretend that it never happened. Like we didn't destroy her life." Anger and hurt stirred in his words. Natalie finally understood the horrible tension within the crew. They would never be able to forgive themselves. "Well, I can't do that! I just- I can't forget."

Pain can fade with time, but guilt never really goes away.

Silence fell between them as James waited for her response. The sound of pouring rain surrounded them, but Natalie hardly noticed it.

This was James apology. It explained why he didn't want her in the crew. James didn't want to hurt anyone else like he had hurt Ro. He would never utter the words I'm sorry or get down on his knees and beg for her to stay. He would never say he was wrong. As a matter of pride. The hardest thing about mistakes is admitting them to someone else. The pain it caused James to admit his fault to Natalie was an apology in it's self.

But it was all the apology Natalie needed. He had let her into his world. James had taken the risk of bringing a stranger into the crew. Into the family.

Her anxiety seemed to have faded away and it was her turn to comfort him.

There was no reassurance that could fix this, nothing that could truly convince him it wasn't his fault. But his eyes made it clear that James needed to be forgiven. So Natalie found the words "You didn't ruin her future, James. There is more to life than being a thief. If she's anything like Mac, she'll be okay."

Lightening burst out overhead of them. The sound made them both jump, and laugh nervously. The tension was broken. With the laughter, the pain and hurt seemed to fade away. It was okay. Mistakes could never be changed, but all was forgiven.

"Why is it that you and I always meet in the rain?" James asked with a grin.

Natalie smiled back. "I don't know." She shrugged. Another shot of thunder rocked the air. "But I think it suits us, don't you?"

**So I know that's probably not the ending to the confrontation that you guys wanted. I don't know, I just could bring myself to make them get together in this scene. It didn't seem right. Anyways I hope you enjoyed. I'd love to hear what you think. -Niephora (P.S. Next chapter is the heist. Get excited.) **


	15. The Best of Opponents

**Here's the one you've all been waiting for. The Heist! Fair warning it's a long chapter. Before we get started I just wanted to say if ever at any point something in my stories offends you or you think it could be potentially offensive towards other people, please let me know. I'll have no problem changing it. I never intentionally write anything that would insult others, and I would never wish to. Just leave me a review or send me a privite message to let me know and I'll be happy to fix it. Anyways, enjoy the big chapter and don't forget the review!**

The bag was packed and the gear set. Hidden underneath a grey sweatshirt was Natalie's one-piece suit. The apartment was quite. There was no more time to test the gear or go over the maps. The day had come and an eerie silence filled the halls.

Natalie stood in front of the open window, taking in the morning sun shining over the tops of buildings. The city was quite, almost soothed, as the day broke. In a few moments the world would wake and the air would be tainted with noise. But in that moment, Natalie was grateful for the peace. It calmed her buzzing nerves.

She knew this was the last time she would see that view. Whether they succeed or not, they would never come back here. It was too dangerous to return to the scene of the crime. Would she miss these four walls and the memories they held?

Natalie observed the bare plaster of the walls, where just the night before there had been dozens of blueprints and traffic maps. The usually crowded floor was cleaned of all traces of their presence. The white sheets covered the furniture once again and the dust had returned to the air. No footprints marked the stairs; no fingerprints lay in the dust. Ghosts had walked these halls. Not humans, but the ghosts of thieves.  
She felt him enter the room, though he made no sound. "It's time to go." James spoke softly, like he could sense her melancholy thoughts. Natalie just hugged herself and nodded.

"I think I'll miss it." She said as she took one last look at the sunrise. "This place, I mean."

James nodded understandingly. "I will too. But there will be other jobs and other hide outs." His words were a promise. No matter the outcome of the job, Natalie was part of the crew now. She wasn't going anywhere. James wouldn't let her.

As they left the old room and descended the stairs, the bells called out across the city, ringing in a new day.

The ocean was simply not Natalie's thing. An intense anxiety always overcame her when she starred into the hazy blue. There was no knowing what was out there, or even what was right bellow her.

But Natalie ignored her anxiety as she swam after the others. She felt a fierce determination building inside her. The diving mask felt as though it was suffocating her, rather than providing her with precious air. Still, Natalie pushed on towards the underwater cave entrance taking shape before her.

She stirred clear of the air pocket above her and swam faster, anxious to be out of the water. Breaking the surface, Natalie spit out her mouthpiece and pulled herself over the slippery edge onto solid ground. The darkness of the cave was broken as Dmitri flicked on his flashlight. Even in the dim light, Natalie could see all traces of his usual grin were gone, replaced with the expression of a determined thief.

Without a word they all set to work. Natalie slipped out of her diving suit, revealing a dry, black 'sneak-suit', as Siena had called it. It was a black onesy, perfect for blending into shadows. Natalie shouldered her bag and put on her shoes. She stuffed her scuba gear into a bag that James was passing around. Once finished she zipped the bag up and handed it to Mac who was still in the water. Leaving anything behind would be careless, and it was a risk no trained thief would take. Mac waved as he descended into the dark water to make the swim back.

Without a sound, James nodded at them. It was time to get the job done. Silently they scaled the rocky walls. Natalie's only light was the glow light she held in her teeth and the rock was slick with moisture. After a few minutes of struggle they reached the ledge, panting from the exertion. In front of them was the smooth outside wall of the museum's basement. The architects of the building had built into the cliff's tunnels, using them as a storage space. It wasn't exactly a traditional entrance but it was unguarded, and that's all a thief can ask for.

Dmitri pulled a drill and wires from his bag and got to work. He drilled four small holes through the concrete and connected them all with wires, which he hooked up to an explosive package in the center. Natalie was impressed at his efficacy. The entire process took only a few minutes.

Dmitri stood and motioned for the others to step away. They shuffled to the sides of the marked site, carefully staying pressed up against the cliff wall. The ledge was only a foot or two wide, and 30 feet in the air. Natalie's foot made contact with an unseen rock and she stumbled for a moment. Dmitri's arm clamped around her waist and pushed her back against the cliff wall. Natalie nodded towards him in thanks and he released her cautiously.

For a moment, in the glow of the light hanging around her neck, Natalie saw the impish grin return to Dmitri's face and he winked as if to say 'Watch this.' Behind him the wall exploded inwards and a cloud of dust stirred in the air. There was no going back now. The explosion had been much quieter than she had expected, but Natalie reminded herself that they were aiming for stealth.

Without a moments hesitation the group moved though the small hole in the wall. Natalie found herself inside the dark basement in a filing room. She had memorized the layout of the basement on the blueprints, but physically standing there was much different. The door was locked from the outside as expected, and Siena picked the lock with the ease of a master.

In the next moment they were soundlessly running down the basement corridors, slowing at every corner to make sure the coast was clear. In her head, Natalie could see them moving through the blueprint approaching the target area. There were many priceless art pieces within those basement walls, but the only one that mattered was 3 floors above them secured in a bulletproof case.

Siena, James, Dmitri and Natalie reached the service elevator. Simply taking the elevator up was not an option as there would be a guard waiting at the top, posted there to prevent guests from taking a detour to the basement. No, when you're stealing a priceless artifact, nothing can be_ that_ easy.

"Cake?" James breathed into the comms unit.

"Hello, darlings." Cake answered cheerfully. "Rerouting the elevator now. All alarms are disabled. Go for it, honey cakes."

With Cake's confirmation, James pried open the elevator doors revealing the empty shaft. They all pulled clamps from their bags and set to work pulling themselves up the cords in the middle of the shaft. Four stories later they had reached ground level and Dmitri took the honor of unscrewing the vent from the wall.

Despite movie portrayals, being a thief is not at all glamorous. And it is certainly not a profession for the claustrophobic. Natalie's arms arched from the effort of scaling the robes and a layer of sweat covered her skin, made worse by the fact that the dust in the vents clung to it.

After a few moments of crawling the boys broke off. A couple more meters and Siena and Natalie had reached the vent opening. They dropped into the deserted woman's bathroom, unseen.

It took only a few moments to slip into their evening gowns and dispose of their bags and suits in the garbage shoot. Natalie stood with Siena in front of the large mirror. Waterproof makeup intact, wet hair slicked back into a chic up-do, and dawning her cream gown, she was ready. Apart from the scratches and bruises, souvenirs from her cave diving adventure, Natalie fit the part of the rich aristocratic guest.

Of course, for Natalie it wasn't a part, it was an everyday reality. But this gala was much more important than any she had been to before. _This_ was dangerous, she reminded herself. _This _was illegal. And _this _was _fun_.

But still, Natalie paled in comparison to the striking girl next to her. Siena gave one last groan and tug at her dress, before putting her game face on. As she turned to face Natalie, she transformed. All sense of self-consciousness was gone, replaced by a wicked and charming smile. In that moment, there was no doubt that Siena Antakov was a born femme fatale.

A new wave of nerves hit Natalie as she entered the grand hall. The place was crowded with Europe's rich and famous. There was a good chance that someone might recognize Natalie. But it certainly wasn't her all the eyes in the room focused on as they entered. It suddenly occurred to Natalie that when you were all beautiful as Siena, it would be hard to go unnoticed. But her fear was amended as her turned and realized Siena had already disappeared into the crowd.

Natalie focused on her own task. She navigated her way through the crowd at a leisurely pace whilst surveying the scene. The glass display case was across the room from the stage on which the band played. Couples dawning their gowns and tux were gliding across the dance floor in a sweeping waltz.

The statue sat within a bulletproof case and the crowd shuffled by it. The statue of Hermes was hardly the most impressive item in the display, but that didn't necessarily mean it would be any easier to steal. Guards were posted at every entrance and exit as well as four around the display cases. White was taking no chances.

Natalie was put off her game for a moment when she noticed a pair of hazel green eyes watching her from across the room. Blacker raised his champagne glass and nodded towards her with a slick smile. He exuded a kind of confidence and calm that set Natalie on edge. Or maybe it was just the fact that he looked like a young version of James Bond in his tux that had Natalie's nerves on fire. Sam Blacker was dangerous to their heist. But Sam Blacker in a tux was a whole different kind of dangerous.

She nodded to Blacker in return and resumed her tour about the room. But it was hard to concentrate on her work as she felt his eyes following her. The clock on the wall of the gallery marked the 27th minute into the hour. She had reached her position right on schedule. But when Natalie turned around again, Blacker had disappeared from his place across the room. Not knowing where he was, was more disconcerting than having him watching her every movement. Natalie forced herself not to survey the room in a panic. She needed to keep her calm demeanor so as not to attract unwanted attention.

The crowd limited her view but Natalie knew where her crew was at all times. Siena was engaged in conversation with an old banker by the African mask display case. James stood on the balcony, watching the crowd with intense eyes as some pretty young heiress chattered on beside him. It occurred to Natalie then that she might be sticking out like a sore thumb, standing in the middle of the party by herself.

Her attention was quickly rerouted as Cake chirped over the comms unit. "8:28 ladies and gentlemen. One minute, 25 seconds and counting. Take your places everyone." Cake's cheerful tone stood in stark contrast to the moods of the rest of the crew.

"Champagne, Miss?" The waiter came from behind Natalie.

"Yes, thank you." She lifted a crystal flute from the tray and downed it. Her nerves were shot.

"On second thought," Natalie said to the waiter with the bright green eyes. "I'll just take the bottle." She lifted the hollow champagne bottle from the tray.

"Oh, course Miss." Dmitri gave her one of his signature winks before departing.

Natalie glided through the masses as Cake spoke again. "40 seconds to show time. Are all my darlings ready?"

Dmitri was the first to confirm. "All set here."

"Set." Siena breathed into the comms unit, having detracted herself from the conversation with the Italian banker.

"Set." Natalie glanced around the room again. No sign of Blacker or his crew. Which in itself was not a good sign.

"Set." James finalized the crew's check.

On the stage a grayed and rounded Mr. White made his way to the speakers stand. The music stopped and the crowd turned towards the stage. Ten feet away from Natalie, Siena kneeled to fix the strap of her heel.

"Here we go." Cake giggled.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I first thank you for joining us this evening in a celebration of the arts. I personally have always said that art is what-" White suddenly was cut off by a electronic screech coming from his microphone. The entire crowd covered their ears.

Like the strike of a Cobra, Siena had set to work on the display case lock. Cake had disabled the weight sensor and laser alarms electronically. With incredible skill, Siena popped the lock in four seconds flat. She switched the statue with the fake, bought in the museum gift shop, and closed the case before anyone had a chance to recover from the shock of the microphone's screech.

As White apologized for the technical difficulties, Natalie moved passed the case at a leisurely stride. Siena popped the statue in the air in a perfect ruby pass, and Natalie caught it casually with one arm. She swiftly opened up the false champagne bottle like a book and placed the small statue inside without changing her pace. The bottle closed around the statue with a click, having been made to fit it perfectly. The pass was so quick that any observer would have missed it. The girls had practiced it a thousand times, and Natalie had to fight to keep the satisfied grin from her face.

There was still work to be done. She could feel the weight of the stolen goods burning her hands. Now was not the time to get cocky.

Natalie was grateful as Dmitri passed by holding his tray. She smoothly placed the bottle back on the tray and continued her walk about the room. She couldn't help but breath a sigh of relief as the precious statue left her hands.

"We've got a problem, darlings. Blacker the big bad wolf just spotted our pot of gold and he is not happy about it." The giggle had vanished from Cake's voice.

James swore into the comms. "Change of plans. Keep the statue from Blacker's crew. Pass off as often as you can. He isn't going to let this one go lightly."

Across the room, Natalie spotted a pass between Dmitri and Siena in her peripheral vision. The girl with the strong jaw from Blacker's crew was close on Siena's tail. Natalie wove her way swiftly through the crowd, coming to Siena's rescue. The girl seemingly didn't notice the pass between the two girls as she still followed closely behind Siena. But another one of Blacker's boys caught the exchange and set his eyes on Natalie.

She climbed the stairs to the upper level quickly.

"Nat, you've got a tail." Cake cautioned.

"I've noticed." Natalie spoke under her breath. "Any suggestions?"

It was James who chimed in then. "Go to the balcony on your right." Natalie followed the command without question. But doubt shrouded her mind as she reached the railing. The tail was only ten feet behind her and she had just cornered herself on the outdoor balcony. The only other exit was the 30-foot drop into the ocean.

She was seriously considering it when James hissed into the comms. "Look down."

Just as Blacker's boy, Daniel Parker, entered the balcony, Natalie let the bottle slip from her fingers and she watched as it fell to the balcony one story bellow, coming to rest in James arms.

Turning to face the baffled man behind her, Natalie just shrugged and ducked under his arm before he could catch her. She picked up her pace as she descended the staircase to the main level. In her ear the crew buzzed back and forth to one another as they played hot potato with a priceless artifact hidden in a fake champagne bottle. Some days are strange.

The bottle entered her hands once again as Dmitri slipped by. Natalie tried to make her way towards James, who stood by the stage.

Emerging from the crowd, Sam caught Natalie's arm in a vice grip. "Gig's up, give it to me. " Natalie felt the statue slip from her fingers as Siena passed by and the bottle shifted between hands without Sam's notice.

"Why, whatever do you mean, Sir?" Natalie smiled innocently, displaying her empty hands in front of her.

Sam laughed wickedly and leaned in towards her, becoming suffocatingly close. To anyone around them they would have looked like a normal, loving couple. But in truth they were two very determined opponents playing a very dangerous game.

Sam's cheek brushed against Natalie's as he hissed in her ear. "Alright, you want to play, little thing? Let's play."

And with that Sam released her arm, turned on his heel, and strode off into the mass of bodies around them. He moved with a frightening grace, like a calculating tiger about to pounce upon his prey.

The comms buzzed with Cake's high-pitched voice, updating them on the ware bouts of Blacker's crew. They made pass after pass. It was a like a beautifully orchestrated dance. The priceless statue moved from one hand to another in seamless and silent movements. The crew weaved in and around each other like they had been born the work together. Born to pull this job.

Blacker's team scrambled after the statue, trying to trap its holder into a corner, but they moved too quickly.

James spoke into her ear through the comms. "I've got it. Now let's quite messing with them and get out of here."

Natalie drifted for a few minutes around the room. They would have to spread out their departures so as not to attract attention.

Two floors above her, Siena and Dmitri reached the roof. Across the street in the window of an adjacent building, Mac shot the zip line at the roof of the museum. Efficiently, the two sides firmly attached their ends on the line. Siena was the first to cross through the air. She stumbled on the landing due to her deathtrap heels.

Mac grabbed her waist and gently pulled her through the window. They stood that way for a moment, chests pressed together as Mac held her. Both breathing heavily. Their faces were only inches apart.

"Hello." Mac whispered as he starred into her eyes. A slow smile climbed its way across his face.

"Hi." Siena breathed in reply.

Just then, Dmitri came crashing though the window and landed on his ass. Mac and Siena split apart. From his place on the floor, Dmitri smirked. "What no landing party for me?"

Bellow, Natalie surveyed the crowd but couldn't see Blacker. What dark crevice was he hiding in?

Her train of thought was broken by Cake, telling her it was her turn to leave.

Natalie slipped from the golden glow of the party into the darkness of the service stairwell, where James stood waiting for her.

"Hello, stranger." James' grin was contagious. "Come on we've got a line to catch." Natalie removed her heels and they raced up the stairs two at a time. They emerged on the roof as the sun was setting. The cool air brushed against Natalie's bare arms. On the other side of the roof a zip line waited to take them to safety. Natalie could see Siena's outline in the window, frantically waving at them. What was she saying? Natalie couldn't hear her shouts over the wind.

James turned to look back at Natalie and the smile dropped from his lips.

A cold, sharp blade appeared at Natalie's throat and a strong arm pulled her backwards, away from the zip line, away from James and away from escape.

"What the hell are you doing?" James looked bewildered.

"Just pass the statue here Bishop and we'll all walk away. Isn't that right little thing?" Blacker's voice sent a chill down Natalie's spin.

"Your not a murderer, Sam." James tried to reason with him.

"Your right, I'm not. I'm a thief. And we wouldn't be in this situation if you had just let my crew pull this job. But you didn't, did you? No, you just had to get in the way."

"We're just trying to set things right."

Blacker let out a crazed laugh. He was losing it. Natalie was becoming very aware of how close they were to the edge of the roof. She could hear waves hit the cliff side three stories bellow. "Of course! What was it you said to me in the cafe, oh right, 'It's about honor'" Blacker's tone was mocking. "Poor Bishop, didn't your mother and father ever tell you, there's no honor among thieves."

James jaw stiffened. "Thieves don't con honest men, Blacker."

"Grow up little boy," Blacker spat back, "there are no honest men."

Natalie thought back to her conversation with Blacker in the café and rememebered how he said she could kill him, but he couldn't kill her. "He won't hurt me, James." Natalie called Blacker's bluff.

Blacker pressed the blade into the skin above her collarbone. She let out a painful gasp as the blood trickled out of the wound.

"Wanna bet on that, little thing?" He growled into her ear. "Never test a desperate man."

"Alright fine, have it your way, Blacker." James held out the fake bottle of champagne.

"Bring it here." Sam commanded. Blacker starred greedily at the statue as James approached. He loosened his grip on Natalie. "See Bishop? There's no need for all this mess. Just hand me the statue."

And suddenly that familiar light appeared in James eyes, which could only mean one thing, he was about to do something stupid, and Natalie was probably going to be a part of it.

"Maybe you're right, Blacker," The grin returned to James' face. "there really is no honor amongst thieves."

With a burst of movement, James tossed the bottle over Blacker's head off the edge of the roof. James then launched himself forward, tackling Natalie backwards. Blacker grabbed for them but was too late. Together they descended over the edge of the roof into a forty-foot drop into the ocean.

Natalie hit the water hard. It knocked the breath from her lungs and left her shell- shocked. It was like a heavy weight was compressing her chest. Air. She needed air. With a big kick Natalie propelled herself upwards and broke the surface, gasping for oxygen, sweet sweet oxygen.

Beside her James came up from the waves, holding the bottle.

On the rooftop above them Blacker stood, too afraid to follow them down. They had fallen forty feet. Any higher and it might have killed them. Natalie moved the hair from her eyes and turned towards James, intending to give him hell for including her in such a stupid plan. But he was grinning like an idiot. And as usual, it was contagious. Before Natalie knew it they were laughing like the lunatics they really were.

**Don't forget to come back on Friday for the final chapter of this story (sob!). Thanks for reading! -Niephora **


	16. A Red Door

**Hello :) Well, this is the last chapter. That's insane! It's gone by so fast. Thank you to Moogie, LazyGirlSunday, The Inked Pen, K, cheeseysmiler, and Littlebookdemon for your reviews. I am so grateful that you took the time to read my story. Look out for my next fan fictions. I've got some ideas up my sleeve. Until then enjoy the last chapter. **

Pero Petrakis slowly made his way through the small house, turning off the lights. His family had once been very wealthy, until his grandfather had been cheated. The family lost everything. All their precious heirlooms were sold off for profit or hidden away in that cruel man's home.

Pero's father and grandfather had both passed away. He was now the head of the family. Slowly, over time the family was able to pull themselves out of the devastating poverty and repay their debts. Pero had worked his hands to the bone to make a better life for his children. Now they lived in a comfortable home, though it was small. The family could once again be happy, and put the suffering behind them.

Pero flicked the lights in the hall as he passed the kitchen. In the shadow's he spotted a figure sitting at the kitchen table. His heat missed a beat but he recovered enough from the shock to move cautiously towards the table. He thought of his innocent grandchildren sleeping soundly in their beds just down the hall.

As he approached he realized the person in the shadows was a boy, no more than 18.

"There is nothing for you to steal here. We have no valuables."

The boy didn't say anything in response. Instead he wordlessly placed a statue on the table in front of him.

Pero immediately recognized the gold figure of Hermes from his childhood. It had been carefully kept in an alcove in his grandfather's villa. The sight of the thing brought him to tears.

"How did you-Is it really true?"

Finally the boy spoke. "There's no honor in stealing from honest men. It was a fact Gregory White needed to be reminded of."

Pero took the statue in his hands and studied it just like he had when he was a young boy. "But how did you get this?"

"I stole it." The boy said bluntly. "Don't worry they won't come looking for it. They don't even know it's gone yet."

"Thank you. Please, young man, tell me your name so that I can know who has done my family this great kindness."

The boy seemed hesitant, but then said. "Consider it a gift from the Bishops. From my family to yours."

Pero left to wake his wife and family. To show them there long lost family heritage. When he returned to the kitchen it was empty. There sat a chair by the table where a ghost of a boy once sat.

The crew stood in the crisp fall air in front of the Brooklyn brownstone. From the outside it looked like any other regular home for any other regular family. But in truth it was home to some of the best thieves in the world. Hidden away behind the brownstone's sturdy walls, James' ancestors had planned the best heists the world had ever seen.

Most of the crew had grown up here, but Natalie West stood on the doorstep for the first time. The red door in front of her seemed menacing. Her palms grew sweaty and her heart rate picked up nervously. She wasn't the first stray to pass through that door, and she probably wouldn't be the last. Her mind raced with intimidating thoughts as she starred at the doorknob. Would they accept her? Would she be part of the family or would they cast her off?

"It will be fine." James tried to reassure her. "They'll love you. I promise."

The crew had just finished their heist the day prior. They had successfully stolen the statue right out from under White's nose and managed to beat Blacker and his crew to the punch.

But more importantly Natalie wasn't alone anymore, she had her crew now. Natalie felt like one of her Monet's. She was one of the many strokes of color that glided around the canvas in perfect harmony. A single violin, consumed by the accompanying orchestra. Natalie was part of a bigger picture, and she had never seen a more beautiful picture than this one.

She was now officially part of the crew, but it was an entirely different thing to be part of the family. In a minute she would walk through the red door and face judgment by James' mother, Katarina Bishop, who was seen as the head of the family. She had never been more intimidated in her life.

Natalie turned to look back at the rest of the crew's smiling faces. Dmitri wore his usual grin and confidant stance.

Siena nodded reassuringly. Natalie had never really had a best friend before, but she was pretty sure Siena fit the bill.

Beside Siena, stood Mac with his usual stony expression, but there seemed to be a new kind of warmth in his eyes. Natalie couldn't help but notice how close he stood to Siena. Their fingers brushed against each other's so subtly that it would have gone unnoticed by the other two boys.

With the knowledge that her crew was behind her, Natalie's confidence was renewed.

"Ready?" James asked with a smile. He looked the same way he did when she first saw him standing in the London rain, but some how different.

Natalie took a deep breath and nodded.

James opened the door and stepped inside. A rush of warm air greeted Natalie. Heart pumping, she followed James through the doorway of the brownstone, and left the world she once knew behind her. Natalie was no longer just a West. Because she was so much more than her last name.

Natalie was a thief.

**I'm sorry! I know you guys wanted more conclusion than that and for things to be explained, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. It didn't feel right to just throw it all in for the sake of getting it done. I promise the Kat/ Hale/ Nick thing will be explained in my next story, which is entirely about Kat and Nick. If you guys want I could also write another story for the Second Generation. I really enjoyed reading all your thoughts through out the story so whether good or bad, leave me a review. In the mean time, I will kick my lazy butt into gear and get to work writing for the Kat and Nick Fanfic. I hope to talk to you all again soon! -Niephora **


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